Tuesday August 18th 2026
Glasgow City Chambers, where councillors are set to consider proposals for a new pay and grading structure for council staff
Written by Local Democracy Reporter, Drew Sandelands
A plan to end Glasgow’s long-running equal pay dispute does not come close to delivering fair pay for everyone, a union has warned.
Thousands of workers at Glasgow City Council are facing “significant” financial loss as a result of the proposed new pay and grading structure, UNISON rep Chris Sermanni said.
Councillors are set to be asked to back the phased roll-out of new terms and conditions for just under 24,000 non-teaching staff from April next year when they meet on Thursday.
Under the new system, 63% of the workers will gain financially and 11% will see their wages cut. Their pay would be protected for six months after the implementation of the pay structure.
Mr Sermanni, UNISON Glasgow city branch secretary, said his union, as well as Unite and the GMB, are planning to demonstrate ahead of the council meeting, demanding councillors don’t vote for “these damaging proposals”.
“Unions have worked with the council for eight years to try and develop an equality-proofed job evaluation scheme that delivers fair pay for everyone,” he said. “Despite our best efforts, the council’s proposals don’t come close to that.
“Thousands are facing significant financial loss, and it fails to fully compensate workers for the years of back pay owed. The phased implementation plans would leave one in five council employees on the old pay structure.
“Any new scheme must be equality-proofed and be properly funded. If the council is serious about delivering equal pay, they must urgently seek significant investment. The council risks repeating the mistakes of the past.”
Agreements were reached in 2019 and 2022 on pay claims with thousands of mainly female workers who have been paid less than men in equivalent roles.
But a new pay and grading structure is required to end pay discrimination. Council leader Susan Aitken, SNP, said this step is “really the crucial one in ending unequal pay — and it is also the biggest challenge”.
“I’m very conscious that, while this process is the end of a decades-long fight for equality for many of our staff, a smaller number are going to find it difficult,” she added.
“I’ve written to the chief executive to ask that we explore every possible mitigation, without compromising the integrity of the scheme.”
Around 80% of staff have had their roles evaluated and would move onto the proposed structure in April. The remaining workers would transition as the evaluation process continues.
The council, alongside trade unions, has been working on the new scheme since early 2018. It has also made compensation payments totalling £770m to thousands of former and current staff for historic inequalities.
A joint trade union response to the proposal was published alongside the report to councillors on the city administration committee.
It states they believe the proposals “fall significantly short” of the aim of implementing an equal pay compliant pay & grading structure that is fair, sustainable and capable of supporting high-quality public services.
The unions have “grave concerns over the level of financial detriment faced by workers, the assimilation and backpay arrangements, and the inadequate pay protection provisions”.
“Many of the concerns are underpinned by the urgent need for further significant investment in the overall pay bill and associated implementation costs,” the response adds.
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