Nursery nurse members of the public services union Unison staged two days of strikes between 16 and 18 September and a rally in Glasgow last weekend to express support for the pay claim.
A pay offer of up to 12.5 per cent from the council body Cosla was angrily rejected by the union because it was only a recommendation to councils, and the offer did not meet with Unison's claim. Carol Ball, chair of Unison's nursery nurses working group, said, 'We are bitterly disappointed with Cosla although we could accept an offer that still does not reflect our professional duties.'
She described last Friday's meeting with the employers as 'a complete waste of time, because there was nothing new on the table'. She said a heated exchange had ensued before the meeting ended with nothing agreed.
Unison also said that Cosla had failed to say who would decide whether a nursery nurse was qualified for the top-line pay scale of 18,000 or offer a progressive career structure. The pay rise would still mean most nursery nurses would earn less than 15,000.
However, Cosla said that this was the final offer and urged Unison to reconsider its position. It argued that the nursery nurses would have received a minimum pay rise of 6.7 per cent, with others receiving up to 12.5 per cent, backdated to 1 April 2003 with no change to their current working arrangements.
Cosla president Pat Watters accused Unison of walking out of the negotiations. He said, 'There is now nothing left for them to walk away from, because that is it. Instead of concentrating on rallies, they should be concentrating on realities.
'Anybody asking for a 36 per cent pay rise in this day and age with no strings attached needs to look at the justification and the reality of the claim. As a fair employer we cannot possibly justify paying the same for 39 weeks work as for 52 weeks work - which is the central plank of the trade union's claim.'
Last Saturday's Unison rally was attended by a number of politicians including Labour MSPMargaret Jamieson, Scottish Liberal Democrat MEPElspeth Attwooll and Green Party MSPPatrick Harvie. Film actor Gary Lewis, of 'Billy Elliot' and 'Gangs of New York' fame, was also due to attend.
Ms Ball said that the rally and family day had been organised 'to give parents and other trade unionists the opportunity to show their support for our fight'.
