Scotland set for ‘stinking summer’ as union sticks with Edinburgh festival bin strikes and rejects pay deal

Mountains of rubbish could soon pile up on streets across Scotland, it has been warned, as trade union leaders rejected a council pay offer.

Unite said a “stinking Scottish summer looms” unless Cosla, the council umbrella body, and the Scottish Government provide more money. The union said the latest offer “grossly undervalues” workers and would leave the lowest paid worse off than their counterparts elsewhere in the UK.

GMB Scotland said time was running out to halt imminent industrial action, which is expected to take place next month – a period that will cover Edinburgh’s festivals season. Unison, the largest trade union in Scotland’s councils, rejected the 3.2 per cent pay offer on Friday.

Overflowing bins were a common sight during previous strike action in Edinburgh in 2022

First Minister John Swinney insisted he was keen to see the dispute resolved, but refused to say if the Scottish Government would provide more money. Cosla said it was “extremely disappointed” and argued it had put forward “a strong, fair and credible pay offer”.

In 2022, strike action in Edinburgh during the festivals saw rubbish pile up in the city centre, with workers striking for 12 days and Public Health Scotland later issuing a health warning.

Unite said it had the largest membership preparing to take part in a first wave of strike action involving waste workers, street cleaners and recycling centre operators.

It has mandates involving thousands of members across 16 of Scotland’s 32 councils, including Edinburgh and Glasgow, and is in the process of re-balloting workers in five other councils.

The trade union said an offer of £1,290 had been made to council workers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. This equates to a rise of 67p per hour, or 5.2 per cent for a council worker earning around £25,000 based on a 37-hour week.

In contrast, the Cosla offer of 3.2 per cent equates to £800 or a 41p per hour increase, Unite said. This means a Scottish council worker would need to earn above £40,000 to match the offer being made in the rest of the UK.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Cosla has taken months to put a new offer to our local government membership and it’s one that does absolutely nothing to address more than a decade of deep cuts to pay and services.

“Unless Cosla and the Scottish Government move quickly to make an acceptable offer, then mountains of rubbish will pile up across the nation’s streets. The politicians have a choice, and one more chance, to resolve this pay dispute before strike action.”

Graham McNab, Unite industrial officer, added: “Cosla’s latest pay offer doesn’t add any extra cash. It continues to grossly undervalue Scotland’s council workers compared with the offer made to their counterparts across the UK.

“A stinking Scottish summer looms unless Cosla and the Scottish Government quickly sort this out by injecting more cash into a new offer. Any offer will need to value the lowest paid council workers, at least, on similar terms as the offer made to other UK council workers.

“The Scottish Government can no longer sit idly by. We are on the brink of nationwide strike action which could last for months.”

Keir Greenaway, GMB Scotland senior organiser in public services, said: “For Cosla to suggest this is a revised and improved offer only insults the intelligence of our members. It is merely a repackaging of the previous offer already rejected as too low and too late. It begs the question why more weeks have been squandered on this when time is running out to halt imminent industrial action?

“We continue to believe a joint approach seeking more funding from the Scottish Government remains the most likely route to a resolution. Council leaders must meet as a matter of urgency and agree to approach ministers.

“So far, unfortunately, it seems some leaders have preferred to protect relations with their party colleagues at Holyrood instead of urgently seeking a resolution to this dispute. Our members deserve better and Scots relying on the frontline services they deliver, and that is every one of us, deserve better too.”

Speaking during a visit to Peterhead on Monday, Mr Swinney said: “I obviously want to avoid any industrial action taking place.”

He stressed, however, that it was for local authorities and the trade unions to remain “engaged with dialogue” in a bid to resolve the dispute.

The First Minister added: “I am keen that dialogue and discussions are able to take their course, that we can avoid industrial action and have a resolution to that matter that avoids any interruption to services.”

Councillor Katie Hagmann, Cosla's resources spokeswoman, said: "We are extremely disappointed to hear that all three unions have rejected the revised offer. I'll reiterate that the revised offer we put forward last week was a strong, fair and credible pay offer, higher than the rate of inflation and worth more than the first year of the Scottish Government's Public Sector Pay Policy.

"We have been very clear in all discussions with trade unions that the offer is also at the very limit of affordability for councils given the challenging financial situation we are facing. While we are disappointed with this outcome, we remain committed to continuing to engage as positively as we can with our trade unions, as strike action is in nobody’s interests.”

Scottish Labour local government spokesperson Mark Griffin said: “Another summer of bin strike chaos is looming if the SNP does not act. It is the SNP Government’s brutal cuts to council budgets that created this mess and it is their responsibility to fix it.

“The SNP cannot ignore the problem and let litter pile up on our streets like it has in the past. These dedicated frontline workers deserve fair pay and people across Scotland deserve clean streets. The SNP cannot allow this saga to repeat itself every year – workers and the public relying on these services deserve better.

“The SNP must show some leadership and get round the table with Cosla and the trade unions to agree a fair deal for workers and prevent strike misery.”

Similar industrial action in 2022 also took place in Glasgow and a further 18 of Scotland's 32 council areas, lasting until the end of August that year. It took an intervention from then-first minister Nicola Sturgeon to finally help strike an agreement.

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “Local government pay negotiations are a matter for local authorities as employers and unions – the Scottish Government has no formal role.

“The Scottish Government urges all parties involved to work together constructively and reach an agreement, which is fair for the workforce and affordable for employers.”