Staff in the council's nine stand-alone early years centres and three nursery schools will take part in an official union ballot on industrial action if their demands are not met at a meeting between the council and Unison on 21 March.
Unison claims that management have gone back on a deal agreed last April to regrade support staff to local authority pay scale 3 and to scale 5 for qualified nursery staff.
The council has since re-evaluated the jobs at a lower level.
Early years worker Gina Connolly said, 'We are not prepared to be treated like this. While we nave no wish to strike, we are all prepared to do so to defend our jobs.'
Andrew Berry, deputy Islington Unison branch secretary, said, 'If management do not honour their position as it stood in April last year, members will be closing centres.'
