Glasgow's Fight for Equal Pay
The Sunday Times reports that Glasgow's equal pay bill is likely to be settled via a deal to extend the City's very limited borrowing powers.
Now I've been saying exactly this for months (see posts from the blog archive below), but it's taken all this time for the Council to come to the same conclusion although it's great that Glasgow has finally taken this step.
Any extension of Glasgow's borrowing powers requires the support of the Scottish Government and the UK Government as well, according to The Sunday Times article by John Boothman.
So there is indeed a big role to play for Glasgow's MSPs and MPs in ensuring that both governments work together to solve the problem.
Yet Glasgow's MSPs and MPs have been very quiet over the issue up until now - and, as far as I know, not one of Glasgow's parliamentary representatives took the time to come along last Tuesday's March to show their support for the fight for equal pay in Scotland's largest council.
Taxpayers braced for Glasgow equal pay bill
Any extension of Glasgow's borrowing powers requires the support of the Scottish Government and the UK Government as well, according to The Sunday Times article by John Boothman.
So there is indeed a big role to play for Glasgow's MSPs and MPs in ensuring that both governments work together to solve the problem.
Yet Glasgow's MSPs and MPs have been very quiet over the issue up until now - and, as far as I know, not one of Glasgow's parliamentary representatives took the time to come along last Tuesday's March to show their support for the fight for equal pay in Scotland's largest council.
ByJohn Boothman - The Sunday Times
Council employees staged a two-day strike last week, forcing the closure of hundreds of schoolsJEFF J MITCHELL/GETTY
Taxpayers in Glasgow will bear the brunt of an equal-pay crisis that triggered one of the UK’s biggest industrial actions.
More than 13,000 council workers, mainly women, are owed between £500m to £1bn in compensation for being paid less than others in similar posts.
Thousands of council employees staged a two-day strike last week, forcing the closure of hundreds of schools, amid a “lack of progress” on equal-pay claims.
Civic officials in Scotland’s largest city are working on a plan to refinance existing council debt and find new ways to access financial markets, rather than a wholesale sell-off of council assets. This would involve seeking permission from both the Scottish and UK governments to extend the council’s borrowing requirements over the coming decades.
Susan Aitken, the leader of Glasgow council, said she is “determined” to fix what she described as “a long-running injustice” but critics claimed that political incompetence will ultimately saddle the city’s taxpayers with a huge bill.
“People in Glasgow will pay dearly for the incompetence of this current and previous political administration on an issue which has been sorted across local authorities everywhere else in Scotland,” said Adam Tomkins, the Glasgow Conservative MSP. “The council tax payer and local services will pay a heavy burden for their mistakes.”
Aitken said she had no plans to seek financial assistance from the Scottish government to remedy a problem “made in Glasgow”. She added: “I am determined to fix this long-running injustice and I am not blind to the fact that the cost of that will be substantial
“We are working hard on a financial strategy which will allow us to meet the cost and as part of that we are having technical discussions with civil servants. My view is that the Scottish government does not have these kinds of resources available for this and frankly, nor should it.”
Mark Irvine, of Action 4 Equality, who has been at the heart of negotiations in local authorities across Scotland on behalf of women claimants, is urging Glasgow politicians to refrain from the political blame game and find a settlement. “The really important people here are the women, many of whom have been waiting more than 12 years for a just settlement.”
Taxpayers in Glasgow will bear the brunt of an equal-pay crisis that triggered one of the UK’s biggest industrial actions.
More than 13,000 council workers, mainly women, are owed between £500m to £1bn in compensation for being paid less than others in similar posts.
Thousands of council employees staged a two-day strike last week, forcing the closure of hundreds of schools, amid a “lack of progress” on equal-pay claims.
Civic officials in Scotland’s largest city are working on a plan to refinance existing council debt and find new ways to access financial markets, rather than a wholesale sell-off of council assets. This would involve seeking permission from both the Scottish and UK governments to extend the council’s borrowing requirements over the coming decades.
Susan Aitken, the leader of Glasgow council, said she is “determined” to fix what she described as “a long-running injustice” but critics claimed that political incompetence will ultimately saddle the city’s taxpayers with a huge bill.
“People in Glasgow will pay dearly for the incompetence of this current and previous political administration on an issue which has been sorted across local authorities everywhere else in Scotland,” said Adam Tomkins, the Glasgow Conservative MSP. “The council tax payer and local services will pay a heavy burden for their mistakes.”
Aitken said she had no plans to seek financial assistance from the Scottish government to remedy a problem “made in Glasgow”. She added: “I am determined to fix this long-running injustice and I am not blind to the fact that the cost of that will be substantial
“We are working hard on a financial strategy which will allow us to meet the cost and as part of that we are having technical discussions with civil servants. My view is that the Scottish government does not have these kinds of resources available for this and frankly, nor should it.”
Mark Irvine, of Action 4 Equality, who has been at the heart of negotiations in local authorities across Scotland on behalf of women claimants, is urging Glasgow politicians to refrain from the political blame game and find a settlement. “The really important people here are the women, many of whom have been waiting more than 12 years for a just settlement.”
