By Harry Hutchinson, Labour Party Northern Ireland.
Billed as the biggest equal pay strike since the 1970 Equal Pay Act, 8000 mostly female workers went on a 2-day strike in Glasgow. Of the Unison and GMB members balloted 98% supported strike action. Many of the workers work for Cordia, a private firm providing care, cleaning and catering cervices.
The decade-long dispute for equal and back-pay involves 12,000 workers, some now retired and if it was won it could cost Glasgow Council £1bn to settle.
The SNP have controlled Glasgow council since 2017 and face the political impact of the strike. However, despite Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn voicing support for the strike, the Glasgow Labour Party is exposed as having done nothing to resolve the dispute in the many years of their control of the City of Glasgow.
As Glasgow strikers marched through the city, chanting “Equal pay or we walk away”, the strike spread as parking attendants, street cleaners, refuse and road workers, nearly all men, refused to cross picket lines.
Glasgow Council has threatened the GMB with organizing an ‘illegal’ strike and for orchestrating flying pickets but have held back from proceeding with court action.
Despite a lull in industrial action generally throughout Britain, the summer months have seen an increase in strikes over pay, like the three-day strike in London, of mostly migrant workers, demanding £10.20 an-hour, above the £7.83 an hour so-called ‘living’ wage.
October 25, 2018
