All-out strike action by members of the Unite union at Dundee City Council begins today, 4th April, and is set to run for three weeks until 28th April. It will be followed by rounds of daily action until 23rd June.
The dispute is centred on claims that public contracts to private contractors are being prepared for outsourcing by Dundee City Council.
Joiners, plumbers, electricians, labourers and scaffolders voted 95% to back the strike action.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Unite’s trades workers at Dundee City Council are determined to hold management to account over outsourcing plans. The strike action will initially last for three weeks before further action is taken unless the council drop this disastrous proposal.
“Unite will stand up for the jobs, pay and conditions of our members, and we will fight to ensure these services remain in public hands.”
Unite members are also unhappy about call-out payments and the telematics tracking policy involving council vehicles. The trades union claims that a tracking system is being used by council management to monitor employee movements, rather than its stated purpose of improving fleet management.
Unite industrial officer Bob Macgregor added: “We need cast-iron guarantees that there are no proposals by Dundee City Council to outsource any services to private contractors. It is a blatant failure on the part of council management to acknowledge the genuine concerns of the workforce including what we believe is the inappropriate monitoring of council vehicles. Unite will fight for our members every step of the way.”
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