Exclusive:Strikes Scotland: Unions warn of 'summer of discontent' if John Swinney's SNP don't meet pay demands

SNP ministers have been warned Scotland is facing a “summer of discontent” over a looming wrangle with trade unions over public-sector pay.

Public-sector workers will have “little choice” than to launch strike action over the summer unless SNP ministers put forward a “serious offer” on pay, Scotland’s top trade unionist has warned.

Following last summer’s strike ballots by public sector workers, including council staff, tens of thousands of local government workers are being balloted on strike action this year in the “biggest vote of its kind in years” - raising fears Scotland is heading for a “summer of discontent”.

Roz Foyer and John Swinney | Jane Barlow/PA Wire

Council workers have been offered a 3 per cent increase for 2025-26, less than half of the 6.5 per cent asked for by Unison.

NHS workers in Scotland on ‘agenda for change’ terms and conditions have been offered an increase of 4.25 per cent, backdated from April 2025 and an increase of 3.75 per cent from April 2026.

READ MORE: John Swinney hands SNP ministers £20,000 pay rise after 16-year freeze

But now Roz Foyer, general secretary of the STUC, has told The Scotsman that unless the Scottish Government can make an offer that acknowledges “years of pay erosion and the impact of the cost-of-living crisis”, more industrial action could be on the cards this summer.

The signal means that SNP ministers are poised for a collision course with trade unions and workers over pay once again.

Speaking exclusively to The Scotsman, Ms Foyer said: “Unless the Scottish Government is prepared to put a serious offer on the table to workers – one that accounts for years of pay erosion and the impact of the cost-of-living crisis – then they will be left with little choice than to, yet again, stand up for themselves, their sector and their families.

STUC general secretary Roz Foyer | Andrew Milligan/PA Wire

“This is about people’s livelihoods and their standard of living. They are within their rights to bargain for more – not to just meekly accept the status quo.

“As such, we would implore the Scottish Government to take seriously the demands of our recent STUC congress – and the fine workers who make up our movement - who outlined, in no uncertain terms, just how united our trade unions are in fighting for better pay, terms and conditions."

The warning was made after bin strikes planned to hit Edinburgh’s festivals in August last year were suspended at the last minute after unions, including Unite, Unison and GMB, chose to consult on an improved pay offer.

Scottish Labour finance spokesperson Michael Marra said: “Year after year the SNP has forced Scots to deal with strike chaos because of bungled pay negotiations. The SNP has torched all sense of goodwill in these negotiations by breaking promises in the past, so it must work to rebuild trust.

READ MORE: 'Bleeding taxpayers dry': SNP warned 'no evidence' higher pay helping to retain public sector staff

“The SNP Government must get round the table and negotiate a fair deal for public sector workers across the board before Scots are forced to pay the price.”

Scottish Conservative shadow finance secretary Craig Hoy said: “After years of savage SNP cuts to local council budgets, it is hardly surprising threats of strike action are once again looming large.

“SNP ministers cannot repeat their previous errors and be asleep at the wheel until the very last minute. If John Swinney and his ministers don’t engage and get round the table with unions, then they are risking this escalating into a summer of discontent in communities across Scotland.”

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “Scottish ministers recognise the importance of the public sector workforce and have prioritised a fair and progressive approach to public sector pay.

“Positive negotiations are taking place across public sector workforces for pay in 2025-26 and future years despite a challenging fiscal context.”

Concerns far-right spreading misogyny

The trade union chief has also raised the alarm over a surge in violence against women, pointing to “the social media and Andrew Tate stuff that is being poured into our schools” that was “making women feel very unsafe”.

She said: “We’ve got some serious problems with misogyny in our society, which is part of the wider worry I have about right-wing politics and rhetoric.”

Her comments were made as it emerged the Scottish Government was dropping plans to bring forward legislation to tackle misogyny in this Holyrood term.

Ms Foyer, who unapologetically branded Nigel Farage’s Reform UK party as a “far-right” force, said she was "concerned” at the lack of action from the SNP and Labour to counter the threat.

Read more: SNP accused of 'humiliating U-turn' as delayed misogyny legislation scrapped

She said: “I think it’s important we start to point out those dangers, otherwise we are sleepwalking towards a very dangerous situation for our democracy, our politics and many of the values that we are very proud of here in Scotland.

“We’ve been a very progressive society and I would hope that we would continue to be a progressive society. But there is a real danger there.

“I think that the political parties, centre-left political governments, are in the last-chance saloon of public opinion right now. If they don’t start doing a better job of delivering for working people, then it’s no surprise to me that people are starting to look for answers elsewhere.

“I think there is a tendency at the moment for mainstream politics, for some of the progressive moves we’ve made as a society, to be sliding back towards the right.”

Union frustration at Labour

The STUC chief stressed the UK Labour government was due “credit where credit’s due” for its workers rights legislation brought forward by Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner that will “form a foundation of us being able to get better pay, better conditions, make work pay and get more workers being able to access better rights at work”.

She added: “That's long overdue and a very fundamental foundation to rebuild a fairer society.

“But we still have a situation for far too many workers on the ground where their household bills are wiping out any minimum wage rises we might have seen for some of our lowest-aid members.

READ MORE: Scotland's top trade unionist lashes out at Keir Starmer's Labour's 'broken promises'

“Ultimately, we’re seeing a Labour government that is dealing with a lot of international change and shifting sands right now. But they seem to be choosing to punch down and cut welfare budgets and look to be punishing our most vulnerable for some of the changing circumstances that are taking place.”

Asked what the STUC would like to see Sir Keir Starmer’s government bring forward, Ms Foyer said: “We would like to see them really starting to stand up to the billionaire class and starting to have more progressive taxation policies -wealth taxes etc - that actually look at where the real wealth lies in our economy and start to redistribute that.

“Their fiscal rules, which I think it would be legitimate to look at loosening those further in the current time of international crisis, that doesn't seem to be on the agenda at all. There are other answers that the UK Labour government could be looking at that they are failing to do so.”

Sir Keir Starmer with Anas Sarwar (left) after delivering his keynote speech at the Scottish Labour Party conference in Glasgow. Picture: Jane Barlow/PA Wire | Jane Barlow/PA Wire

Ms Foyer stressed that delegates at the STUC congress in Dundee this week had a “muted response” to speeches by John Swinney and Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar.

She said: “I think that’s indicative of where our delegates are. The congress is like the workers’ parliament.

“Our delegates are ordinary working people who are out there, they’re workplace reps who represent their members. They’re suffering the way everyone else is suffering - promises of jam tomorrow just aren’t good enough.”

Pointing to the Scottish Government, the STUC general secretary said there had been “18 years of fantastic talk about a wellbeing economy, about a just transition”.

But she warned “that’s not the reality that people are seeing on the ground in working-class communities”, adding “we are still seeing widespread poverty”.

Ms Foyer added: “Fundamentally, we need to see manifestos coming forward that actually put forward real policies that are going to deliver, and are going to be honest and actually make a material difference to people on the ground.”