Glasgow, 'Good Riddance' and Equal Pay
Glasgow City Council’s first and, so far, only female chief executive, Annemarie O’Donnell, has announced she is stepping down and taking early retirement.
The usual ‘gushing tribute’ has been paid by the SNP council leader, Susan Aitken (see below), but it would be remiss of me not to say ‘Good Riddance’ on behalf of all the low paid, predominantly women workers who had to fight GCC tooth and nail over two decades to win a settlement of their equal pay claims.
Annemarie O’Donnell featured in Glasgow’s equal pay scandal from start to finish - she played a big part in designing and implementing the council’s revised WPBR pay arrangements which were introduced in 2007 in record breaking time.
Annemarie defended the council’s WPBR pay scheme for over 10 years before it was finally declared as ‘unfit for purpose’ and discriminatory - in a wonderful landmark decision by the Court of Session, Scotland’s highest civil court, in 2017.
Annemarie was chief executive in December 2017 when the SNP led Glasgow city council appealed and tried to overturn the Court of Session’s unanimous judgment which failed, thank God - no with thanks to the CEO and GCC's political leaders who backed this shameful appeal.
Annemarie was also still in post when 8,000 Glasgow equal pay claimants went on an historic strike for two days in October 2018 as settlement negotiations stalled and were in danger of breaking down, as a result the council’s foot-dragging, incompetence and intransigence.
So from the standpoint of Glasgow’s equal pay claimants Annemarie’s tenure as chief executive has been an epic failure although like many of her senior GCC colleagues she leaves with a public honour, an OBE - a step down from the CBE awarded to her male predecessor, George Black.
Now that looks a tad discriminatory if you ask me - but ironic and hilarious too in the circumstances!
Glasgow City Council chief executive to stand down in May
IMAGE SOURCE,GLASGOW CITY COUNCIL - Image caption,Annemarie O'Donnell will depart the chief executive role after nearly a decade
The chief executive of Glasgow City Council is to stand down from her role in May.
Annemarie O'Donnell had held the post for nearly 10 years and will retire to "start making room in my life for other things."
During Ms O'Donnell's time in charge she saw the city council's administration switch from Labour to the SNP, and played a key role in the city's response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
She was also in the job during the long-lasting equal pay court cases dispute that saw £770m spent on settling the matter with thousands of workers.
Recruitment for a new chief executive is to begin immediately and Ms O'Donnell's successor will be appointed before she leaves the post.
She said she had been "privileged" to hold the job.
She added: "I was still in my 40s when I was appointed chief executive and, since then, nearly a decade has passed in the blink of an eye.
“It’s not a job that really allows you time or capacity to do, or even think about, much else and, when I look forward to the next 10 years, I want to be able to start making room in my life for other things."
Ms O'Donnell also said it would be a mistake to think that the city council would not continue to face "extraordinary challenges" in the coming years.
Council leader Susan Aitken praised Ms O'Donnell for her "professionalism" and for helping to "see Glasgow through everything from major fires to a global pandemic".
She added: “It’s difficult to overstate Annemarie’s contribution to Glasgow during her long career at the council, and particularly as chief executive.
“Her calm demeanour belies a real passion for the city and determination to make things better, especially for our residents and communities who face the biggest challenges."
Ms O'Donnell began her career in local government with Glasgow District Council 33 years ago as a solicitor.
She went on to hold roles in social work services and corporate services, before succeeding George Black as chief executive in 2014.
