Council staff from across Wales have urged the National Assembly to back employees in the ongoing local government pay dispute.
Unison Wales yesterday led demonstrations of local government and school support workers, who called on assembly members to get behind the union in its bid to achieve ‘fair funding for Welsh services’.
Dominic Macaskill, Unison Wales head of local government, said: ‘I am questioning why local government workers are being locked out of the recovery through severe and ongoing pay restraint, and why no political party is standing up and making the case for our public servants.
‘Refuse collectors, social workers, carers, cleaners, teaching assistants, environmental health workers, caterers, town planners, administrators, school crossing patrol, caretakers, school cooks, nursery nurses, library staff and the many other local government workers deserve to be paid fairly in recognition of the vital work that they do.
‘But instead, increasing numbers are struggling to make ends meet, are experiencing in-work poverty, and are forced into taking out payday loans and visiting food banks.
‘In the meantime, local government budgets have been strangled and those very same workers who are already seeing their pay diminish are now being expected to pick up the slack.’
Around one million local government workers in England are poised to strike for a second time this year over pay. Unison, GMB and Unite will join for strike action next month.
However Welsh council leaders have maintained they have little room to manoeuvre with tightened budgets.
Welsh Local Government Association leader Bob Wellington last week said: ‘It is time to face up to the fact that continued cuts to the local government budget in Wales are not a cut to councils as organisations, but a cut to vital public services that many communities in Wales rely upon for their health and wellbeing.
‘Leisure centres will close, libraries will shut, day centres will be depleted and there will be significant levels of job losses. As council leaders we believe that every politician in Wales and the UK, at whatever level and in whatever Government, has a duty to ensure this does not occur.’
