North Lanarkshire Update
I wrote a post the other day about an ongoing pay dispute in Glasgow City Council where the unions are running a campaign under the slogan of 'Justice for Jannies'.
Now I would have thought that there must be lots of other groups in Glasgow (including female dominated groups of staff) with similar complaints to the one now being raised by by the unions on behalf of School Janitors.
But who knows maybe this new found militancy is slowly working its way along the M8 motorway in the general direction on North Lanarkshire.
Curiouser and Curioser (17/05/16)
I've just received an interesting email from a reader in North Lanarkshire who says that not all Council Janitors are on Grade NLC 6 - and that some are on Grade NLC 4 (which is still higher than the NLC Grade 3 awarded to Home Carers).
Now this is very odd because under the previous Manual Worker (MW) Job Evaluation Scheme (JES) the vast majority of Janitors were on Grade MW5 just like the Home Carers.
And, of course, under the 'rules' of JES, posts that are being assessed are supposed to be evaluated on their content of the job at the time.
So I'd be keen to know how many NLC Janitors were placed on Grade NLC 4 and how they came to be treated so differently from their NLC 6 colleagues, and if anyone has information to pass on, drop me a note at: markirvine@compuserve.com
As regular readers will recall, the unions in Glasgow are involved in a 'Justice for Jannies' dispute which I am following with great interest, but in the meantime the JES scores in the example shown below are obviously for NLC Grade 6.
I've just received an interesting email from a reader in North Lanarkshire who says that not all Council Janitors are on Grade NLC 6 - and that some are on Grade NLC 4 (which is still higher than the NLC Grade 3 awarded to Home Carers).
Now this is very odd because under the previous Manual Worker (MW) Job Evaluation Scheme (JES) the vast majority of Janitors were on Grade MW5 just like the Home Carers.
And, of course, under the 'rules' of JES, posts that are being assessed are supposed to be evaluated on their content of the job at the time.
So I'd be keen to know how many NLC Janitors were placed on Grade NLC 4 and how they came to be treated so differently from their NLC 6 colleagues, and if anyone has information to pass on, drop me a note at: markirvine@compuserve.com
As regular readers will recall, the unions in Glasgow are involved in a 'Justice for Jannies' dispute which I am following with great interest, but in the meantime the JES scores in the example shown below are obviously for NLC Grade 6.
Glasgow City Council Update (12/05/16)
I was walking through George Square the other day and saw a sight I've never seen before in the long fight for equal pay in Glasgow: a union-led protest about the City Council's local job evaluation scheme, which is known as the Workforce Pay and Benefits Review (WPBR).
Now as I've said on the blog site before, there must be lots of women workers wondering why the unions don't put they same effort into fighting for their pay and conditions, especially as women jobs are still concentrated at the bottom of the pay ladder.
So who knows?
Maybe the trade unions will get behind the campaign to persuade Glasgow City Council to face up to is equal pay obligations and the implications of the recent Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) decision, from which thousands of low paid workers stand to benefit.
Strikingly Different(12/04/16)
I wrote a post the other day about the 'strikingly different' behaviour of the local trade unions in Glasgow City Council, as far as the fight for equal pay is concerned.
Given the recent victory at the Employment Appeal Tribunal you'd think that the local union 'leaders' would show a bit more resolve, perhaps even some leadership, like the leader of the opposition on the Council, Cllr Susan Aitken, who told The Herald newspaper:
"The Council should have sought to do the right thing by these women when it emerged that the original claims may not have been adequately settled.
"Instead it may well have opened itself up to increased liability at a time when public finances are already under enormous pressure."
Indeed.
Strikingly Different (18/03/16)
"Where have all the strikes and protests been during the long 10-year fight for equal pay in Scotland's councils?"
Because although I've taken an active interest in this subject since 2005 I cannot recall a major campaign and/or industrial action on behalf of women workers in Scottish local government whose jobs are still, by and large, stuck at the bottom of the pay ladder.
I must take another look at this Working Context and Demands Payment which is part of Glasgow City Council's local job evaluation scheme (JES), of course.
Image copyright - Dave Moxham Image caption - Janitors on strike held a demonstration outside the City Chambers
More than 100 school janitors in Glasgow have begun a three-day strike in a dispute over pay.
The Unison union said its members wanted additional payments for undertaking tasks which were dirty, unpleasant, involved regularly working outside or heavy lifting.
The staff involved in the action are employed by Cordia - an arms-length body of Glasgow City Council.
All schools were open on Monday but some breakfast clubs were cancelled.
The dispute centres on a claim by janitors for a Working Context and Demands Payment, which can range from £500 to £1,000 annually.
More than 100 school janitors in Glasgow have begun a three-day strike in a dispute over pay.
The Unison union said its members wanted additional payments for undertaking tasks which were dirty, unpleasant, involved regularly working outside or heavy lifting.
The staff involved in the action are employed by Cordia - an arms-length body of Glasgow City Council.
All schools were open on Monday but some breakfast clubs were cancelled.
The dispute centres on a claim by janitors for a Working Context and Demands Payment, which can range from £500 to £1,000 annually.
'No option'
The union has accused Cordia of "using spurious arguments to justify not making this payment" to its members.
Unison Glasgow branch officer Sam Macartney said: "Unison is very clear that school janitors meet the criteria to be awarded this payment.
"Our members have been left with no option other than to take this action as both Cordia and the council are wrong and just not listening to our members.
"The council needs to get round the table with Unison and agree a negotiated settlement of our members' legitimate claim."
Image copyright - Dave Moxham
Janitors on strike turned up at the City Chambers on Monday "with buckets, mops and brooms" to stage a demonstration. Another will be held on Tuesday.
Picket lines were organised on Monday morning with a repeat planned for Wednesday.
The union said teachers, support workers, cleaners and catering staff had been advised by their unions not to undertake the duties of janitors in their absence.
A council spokesman said: "Some of the city's janitors took part in industrial action in a number of our primary, Additional Support for Learning schools and nurseries today, with similar action planned for Tuesday and Wednesday of this week.
"This action unfortunately meant that Breakfast Clubs in affected schools had to be cancelled."
Janitors on strike turned up at the City Chambers on Monday "with buckets, mops and brooms" to stage a demonstration. Another will be held on Tuesday.
Picket lines were organised on Monday morning with a repeat planned for Wednesday.
The union said teachers, support workers, cleaners and catering staff had been advised by their unions not to undertake the duties of janitors in their absence.
A council spokesman said: "Some of the city's janitors took part in industrial action in a number of our primary, Additional Support for Learning schools and nurseries today, with similar action planned for Tuesday and Wednesday of this week.
"This action unfortunately meant that Breakfast Clubs in affected schools had to be cancelled."
