College strikes go ahead in Scotland as union hits out at minister
Unison Scotland has written to the Scottish Government about a 'failure to intervene' in a pay dispute between employers and support staff
Strikes among college support staff in Scotland will go ahead on Thursday after a union criticised a lack of intervention from the Scottish Government.
Unison Scotland, which represents the workers, wrote to Scottish higher and further education minister Graeme Dey to express disappointment at the failure to step in and help resolve a dispute about pay, terms and conditions.
2,000 college support staff across Scotland set to walk out
The letter was sent the day before Unison's national day of strike action, which will see more than 2,000 workers across Scotland's colleges walk out.
It will be followed by rolling strikes from September 11 until September 26 across the country.
Staff were balloted in April over colleges' failure to agree on pay and the national harmonisation of terms and conditions, Unison said.
Unison wrote to Mr Dey in response to a letter in which he ruled out any Scottish Government funding to resolve the dispute, and also failed to rule out compulsory redundancies.
John Mooney, Unison Scotland's head of further education, said: "This just shows how completely out of touch the minister is.
Further education minister accused of a failure to intervene
"Rather than dealing with the critical issue of sorting out a long-overdue pay deal for our hardworking further education staff, he completely refuses to intervene to protect jobs and avert strike action.
"He also fails to rule out compulsory redundancies across Scotland's colleges, leaving Scotland's colleges the only public service that is not covered by the no-compulsory redundancies policy.
"The last thing our members want to do is take strike action, but they have been left with no choice as each pay offer comes with the very real threat of compulsory redundancies.
"If the minister is serious about wanting to avoid disruption to students, then he should start by valuing the people who deliver the vital services Scotland's students rely upon and work with Unison to ensure workers get the fair pay and conditions they deserve."
Scottish Government "concerned" by impact on students
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: "While operational decisions on pay and staffing matters are the responsibility of individual colleges, the Scottish Government remains concerned by the impact this current action is having on students.
"We expect employers and trade unions to make every effort to reach a settlement which is both fair and affordable with a view of bringing this industrial action to a close.
"The Scottish Government recognises the crucial role that colleges play, which is why we have allocated ÂŁ787 million in funding for 2023-24, despite the unprecedented financial challenges facing government.
"The college sector's resource budget has been increased by over Ă‚ÂŁ168 million since 2012-13."
Gavin Donoghue, director of College Employers Scotland, said: "National strike action by the EIS-Fela, Unison and Unite is deeply disappointing, and will only cause disruption and anxiety for students.
Bosses willing to get back round the negotiating table
"Colleges have plans to mitigate the impact of these strikes and the vast majority will remain open.
"College Employers Scotland provided a full and final pay offer to the EIS-Fela and the support staff trade unions (Unison, Unite and GMB) in June for a cumulative ÂŁ3,500 pay rise.
"College Employers Scotland remains open to meeting the trade unions any time to avoid further disruptive strike action in the college sector."