Building Healthier Communities: The Case for Investing in Public Health
Explore how targeted, community-based public health strategies can improve lives, reduce NHS pressure, and deliver cost savings for local authorities.
UNISON: Reorganisation must not be ‘cover for job cuts’
20/03/2025 The abolition of district councils as part of local government reorganisation puts thousands of frontline jobs at risk, says UNISON. |
Union warns of risk of ‘two-tier workforce’
20/01/2025 Council trading companies have created a two-tier workforce as their employees are paid less and receive inferior pensions than town hall staff, UNISON says. |
Waiting continues for multi-year settlement despite 'collapse' warnings
12/09/2024 Local government expects another one-year finance settlement despite warnings that failing to address an estimated £4bn black hole could ‘collapse' the sector. |
Unison starts balloting staff on strikes
03/09/2024 More than 360,000 council and school support staff across England and Wales will begin voting today on whether to take industrial action over pay. |
Council staff face ‘hardship’ as they wait months for pensions
02/09/2024 Former council workers in the West Midlands are waiting months to receive their pensions after retiring, creating ‘huge hardship issues’, trade unions and a council have warned. |
Refuse workers start ‘indefinite’ strike action
20/08/2024 Refuse workers in Sheffield have walked out in an ‘indefinite’ period of industrial action over union recognition. |
Ealing set for ‘parking chaos’ during strikes
15/08/2024 Three weeks of ‘parking chaos’ await Ealing during planned strikes by 40 traffic wardens, Unite has warned. |
Strikes halted as bullying row drags into ninth month
02/07/2024 Refuse collection workers in South Tyneside have called off the first of three weeks of industrial action due to start today. |
Teacher vacancies rise in almost nine in 10 local authorities
19/04/2024 Teacher vacancies have increased in 86% of English local authority areas since 2010, according to analysis by the Trades Union Congress (TUC). |
Refuse workers strike over alleged 'bullying culture'
11/01/2024 Bins across South Tyneside could go uncollected for eight weeks as refuse workers strike over what has been called a ‘toxic bullying culture’. |
Agreement ends long-running bin strike
11/12/2023 An agreement between Warrington Borough Council and the trade union Unite has put an end to refuse workers’ strikes. |
Local authority leaders criticise minimum service levels
11/12/2023 'Unfair’ and ‘undemocratic’ minimum service levels will lead to ‘more frequent and longer strikes’, according to mayors and council leaders from across UK. |
Coventry on collision course with union
05/12/2023 Coventry City Council is on collision course with Unite this month, over controversial proposals to end ‘task and finish’ contracts among waste staff. |
New offer in pay dispute
03/11/2023 More money has been offered in the hope of averting strike action by Scottish Unison members. |
Unison rejects Scotland’s 10% pay offer
16/10/2023 Unison members in Scotland today rejected local government employers’ latest pay deal, which would have seen the lowest-paid staff receive a 10% wage boost. |
Unite and council reach deal to end waste strike
27/09/2023 Waste service workers and street cleaners return to work today after negotiations between Tower Hamlets Council and the trade union Unite put an end to industrial action. |
Brighton settles 10-year equal pay issue
20/09/2023 Brighton and Hove City Council will adjust bank holiday pay for more than 800 staff in response to calls from Unison. |
Unions move closer to summer strike action
03/05/2023 Unite members working for councils have rejected a pay offer from local government employers and the union will now ballot on strike action. |
EXCLUSIVE: Unions poised to submit inflation-busting pay claim
26/01/2023 Local government trade unions are considering an inflation-busting pay demand for 2023-24, The MJ understands. |
Council pay offer accepted by unions
02/11/2022 Local government trade unions have accepted a pay offer that equates to a 10.5% increase for the lowest-paid workers. |
Call for new minimum wage to lift social care workers out of 'poverty pay'
25/10/2022 Care and support workers should be paid at least £15 per hour to help tackle the cost of living crisis, a trade union has said today. |
Warning council staff could strike again within weeks
24/10/2022 Local government workers in Scotland could be back on strike within weeks, trade unions have warned. |
Chief executives ‘exceptionally disappointed’ by pay offer
20/10/2022 The council chief executives' trade union has said that it is ‘exceptionally disappointed’ at a pay offer that fails to reflect the high levels of inflation. |
Scottish council workers get improved pay offer
15/08/2022 Council leaders in Scotland have made an improved pay offer in a bid to avoid strike action. |
Waste workers announce strike action across 15 Scottish councils
11/08/2022 Waste workers in 15 councils across Scotland will walk-out for a week this month in protest over the 'pitiful' 2% pay offer. |
Unison to put pay deal to its members
01/08/2022 Unison has vowed to consult its members on the flat rate pay rise offered to all council staff. |
Unite rejects local government pay offer
28/07/2022 Unite has rejected the flat rate pay rise offered to all council staff this week. |
Council workers in Scotland vote for strike action
27/07/2022 Thousands of Scottish council workers have voted to strike in a dispute over the offered pay rise. |
Sandwell refuse workers secure 9% pay rise to avoid strike action
22/07/2022 Refuse workers in Sandwell MBC have called off a planned strike due to start next week after accepting a 9% pay increase and securing additional annual leave. |
Half of social workers at risk of quitting survey finds
13/06/2022 Nearly half (49%) of social workers say they are less likely to stay in their jobs due to excessive workloads, high stress levels and low morale. |
Adur and Worthing bin strike ends with pay deal
21/04/2022 The long-running Adur and Worthing bin strike has ended after a new pay deal was reached with the local authority. |
Trade unions call for £200 fuel loan to be a grant
07/03/2022 Trade unions have called on the Government to protect working families against further energy price rises as a result of the Ukraine crisis. |
Sussex councils agree pay rise for refuse, recycling and cleansing staff
28/02/2022 Adur & Worthing Councils have agreed to a wage increase for refuse, recycling and cleansing staff following a review of pay and conditions. |
Councillors urged to ensure short-term funding reaches social care frontline
11/02/2022 Councils have been urged to access short-term funding from the Government to boost the pay of social care workers. |
Coventry bin lorry driver strike to cost council £1.8m
09/02/2022 The dispute in Coventry over the pay of bin lorry drivers is likely to cost the city council around £1.8m if it continues to the end of March, the local authority has warned. |
Council care workers earn thousands of pounds a year less in real terms, says TUC
26/01/2022 Local government care workers earn £1,600 less a year in real terms compared to 2010, new analysis has revealed. |
Top 100: Our most popular local government stories of 2021
06/12/2021 From the ongoing dispute over council pay, to how local government is adjusting in the wake of the pandemic, here are the most popular 100 stories on LocalGov from 2021. |
Union starts ballot for strike action
02/12/2021 A trade union has started balloting 370,000 council and school staff for strike action over the 'inadequate' pay offer. |
HGV drivers threaten Christmas strikes
24/11/2021 Drivers of heavy goods vehicles who work for Coventry City Council’s waste services are threatening to go on strike over the Christmas period as part of a pay dispute. |
Care staffing levels are ‘dangerously low' survey warns
24/11/2021 Nearly a third (31%) of care workers have warned staffing levels are ‘dangerously low’, according to a new survey. |
Birmingham could face new equal pay claims
12/11/2021 Birmingham City Council is facing an equal pay ‘crisis’, a trade union has warned. |
Local government needs £68bn to become net zero, report finds
08/11/2021 Local government will need an up-front investment of £68bn from Government in order to become net zero by 2035, according to a new report. |
Thousands of council workers to strike over pay in Scotland
26/10/2021 Trade unions have warned half of Scotland’s local authority areas will see strike action next month unless an agreement is made over council pay. |
Refuse workers strike against ‘ongoing attacks’ on pay and conditions
21/10/2021 Union members at Veolia Sheffield have voted to strike over pay and what they characterise as ‘ongoing attacks’ to their terms and conditions. |
Brighton council and union reaches deal to end bin strike
19/10/2021 Brighton residents will soon once again see their streets cleared of bin bags as the council reaches a deal with striking refuse collection workers to resolve the ongoing industrial dispute. |
Research shows drop in council pay over past decade
14/10/2021 Frontline staff in local government have seen their pay fall by around £1,500 in real terms over the past decade, new research has revealed today. |
More unions announce strike ballots
06/10/2021 Two more trade unions have moved a step closer to industrial action after members rejected the latest pay offer. |
Unison warns of strike action over council pay
04/10/2021 Trade union Unison has warned of future strike action unless local government employers improve their pay offer. |
Union warns of mental health crisis in care sector
15/09/2021 More than two-thirds of care workers (68%) have seen their mental health decline during the pandemic, according to the results of a new survey. |
Union calls for 'new deal' for Shared Lives foster carers
14/09/2021 Councils have been urged to provide a 'pay rise' and respite care for Shared Lives foster carers who look after vulnerable adults in their homes. |
One in ten care workers 'trapped' on Universal Credit
13/09/2021 One in ten care workers are in receipt of in-work benefits, analysis by GMB has revealed. |
New pay deal ends long-running bin strikes in South London
03/09/2021 Disruption to refuse services in the London Borough of Bexley has finally come to an end after a new pay deal was agreed. |
Scottish union to hold nationwide strike ballot
24/08/2021 Councils in Scotland have been put on notice as Unison ballots members over industrial action. |
Strike action at Ealing ends
05/08/2021 There will be no return to the picket lines after an agreement has been reached between the Unite trade union and outsourcer Serco. |
Unions urge pinged staff to isolate
02/08/2021 Unions have urged waste and recycling staff to stay at home if ‘pinged’ by the COVID-19 app despite several councils having to reduce or suspend services. |
PM urged to intervene over council pay
27/07/2021 A trade union has urged the Prime Minister to make funding available to give council workers a 'fair' pay rise. |
Council pay offer increases to 1.75%
27/07/2021 Council employers have offered an improved 'final' pay offer to staff but have offered council chief executives and chief officers a lower increase. |
Workers and communities deserve better than poverty pay and degraded services
08/07/2021 Steve Turner, who is standing to become the next general secretary of Unite the Union, pledges to end the outsourcing of council services and campaign for better pay. |
A new deal for workers in local government
24/06/2021 Sharon Graham, who is standing to become the next general secretary of Unite the Union, sets out her priorities for local government workers. |
Self-isolation payments 'failing' workers
21/06/2021 Two out of three people applying for self-isolation payments are being rejected, according to new research. |
Litter overwhelming councils in tourist hotspots, warns union
15/06/2021 Councils are being overwhelmed by huge piles of litter at UK beauty spots, a trade union has warned today. |
Unions rejects 'insulting' council pay offer
24/05/2021 Two trade unions have rejected the 1.5% pay offer from the national local government employers. |
Norwich Council workers to strike over pay dispute
13/05/2021 Staff working at a council-owned company in Norwich have announced five days of strike action over 'broken promises' on pay. |
Call to tackle 'mental health crisis' in care sector
27/04/2021 Three quarters of care workers have experienced worsened mental health as a result of the pandemic, new research has warned. |
Unions reject councils’ pay offer
26/04/2021 Scottish members of two trade unions have voted to reject a pay offer from councils, raising the prospect of strike action. |
PM told to 'urgently' reform sleep-in shift rules
20/04/2021 Unison has warned that a Supreme Court ruling that sleep-in carers should not be paid the minimum wage for the hours they are asleep could be seen by some as ‘an opportunity to cut costs including wages’. |
COVID-19 mortality rates twice as high in insecure jobs, TUC finds
16/04/2021 Mortality rates during the pandemic are twice as high in insecure jobs than in other professions, a TUC analysis has revealed. |
Labour council pressed to insource service
12/04/2021 Neath Port Talbot CBC has been urged to bring its leisure services under direct control as it searches for a new operator. |
Unions reject Scots pay offer
06/04/2021 Trade unions in Scotland have formally rejected employers’ pay offer of an £800 lower-rate pay rise for 2021, dismissing the sum as an unacceptably poor response to staff efforts during COVID-19. |
Sleep-in shifts legal battle ends
19/03/2021 A long-running legal challenge by care workers over pay worth £400m has been rejected by the Supreme Court. |
COSLA pay offer ‘slap in the face’, union says
18/03/2021 Unison has accused the body representing local authorities in Scotland of making a pay offer that ‘falls far short’ of what local government workers deserve. |
Women on the frontline are 'exhausted' survey warns
17/02/2021 Women working in local government have warned the emotional, physical and financial impact of the pandemic is taking its toll, a new survey has revealed. |
Union calls for nurseries to be closed during lockdown
06/01/2021 Pre-schools including nurseries must be closed except to educate the children of key workers and those who are vulnerable, union says. |
Union calls for libraries to be ‘completely closed’ during lockdown
06/01/2021 A public sector union has called for libraries to be completely closed to protect library workers during the lockdown. |
Top 100: Our most popular local government stories of 2020
16/12/2020 Although the dispute over council pay caused the most stir in the local government sector this year, the impact of dealing with the pandemic obviously dominated the headlines as well. |
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One in nine care workers not tested weekly
16/12/2020 A government pledge to test all care home staff every seven days is not being met, according to a survey published today. |
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Councils urged to back £20 Universal Credit uplift
10/12/2020 Councils have been urged to lobby the Government to make the £20 uplift in Universal Credit permanent by trade union Unite. |
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Sandwell's outsourced refuse workers secure back pay deal
07/12/2020 Refuse workers in Sandwell are set to receive substantial back pay following intervention by trade union Unite. |
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District council workers agree to strike next month
18/11/2020 Up to 1,000 workers at Newry, Mourne and Down District Council are set to strike following a row about pay and conditions. |
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Local government pay deal agreed
21/08/2020 Local government has accepted a 2.75% pay increase, it has been confirmed, despite objections from Unite. |
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Unite members reject 'insulting' council pay offer
17/08/2020 The majority of members of Unite the union have rejected the 2.75% pay offer. |
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Chancellor accused of 'selective memory' over council workers' pay
21/07/2020 Council staff are the 'forgotten army of public service' and are being denied a 'decent' pay rise, a union said today. |
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Thousands of council jobs at risk due to funding shortfall, union warns
07/07/2020 Tens of thousands of council jobs could be lost unless the Government addresses the current funding shortfall, Unison has warned. |
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Unite to ballot members over ‘insulting’ council pay offer
12/06/2020 Around 100,000 council workers will be asked if they want to accept or reject the 2.75% pay offer. |
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Schools using 'professional judgement' on reopening, union finds
04/06/2020 Just over a third of schools (35%) opened on the terms expected by the prime minister on 1 June, a union has found. |
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Unions slam 'woefully low' council pay offer
17/04/2020 The Government should provide extra funding to give council workers a 'proper' pay rise during the pandemic crisis, trade unions have said. |
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Refuse workers in Wirral walk out over coronavirus fears
08/04/2020 Refuse collectors in Wirral have refused to work after claiming Biffa Waste Services failed to introduce strict social distancing measures. |
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Scottish unions blast 'inconsistent' way councils are handling coronavirus
02/04/2020 Trade unions in Scotland have criticised the ‘inconsistent’ approach to protecting council staff from coronavirus. |
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Local government pay summit to go ahead
30/03/2020 Negotiators hope to keep local government pay discussions on track despite the difficulties posed by the coronavirus crisis. |
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Union questions how refuse workers can practice social distancing within an RCV cab
24/03/2020 A union has called on local government employers to spell out how refuse service workers can safely provide an essential service while meeting social distancing requirements. |
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Union and council end dispute amid coronavirus crisis
24/03/2020 Trade union Unite has said its dispute with Veolia over holiday pay for refuse staff working at Tower Hamlets LBC has been resolved. |
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Union accuses town council of being like ‘The Godfather’
19/02/2020 There is a ‘systematic and sustained campaign of bullying’ in the Norfolk town council of Attleborough, according to the union Unite. |
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A 10% council pay rise is 'affordable' says Unison
12/02/2020 A 10% pay rise for council staff is 'affordable' and would boost local economies, new research from a trade union has said. |
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Unions reject 'disappointing' 2% council pay offer
05/02/2020 Trade unions have rejected a 2% pay increase for council staff and called on employers to 'come up with a better offer'. |
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Bromley's eight-month strike comes to an end
31/01/2020 An eight-month long strike at Bromley’s library services has finally ended following an agreement between Unite and the employer, Greenwich Leisure Limited (GLL). |
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Pay dispute threatens to ‘disrupt’ council tax collection
24/01/2020 Newham council faces ‘significant disruption’ to council tax collection and rebates when staff stage a week-long strike in a job evaluation row. |
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Unions blast 'unnecessary' delay to council staff pay rise decision
23/01/2020 Trade unions have criticised employers for failing to make a pay offer to local government staff yet. |
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Surrey firefighters vote for Christmas industrial action
12/12/2019 Firefighters in Surrey have voted in favour of industrial action short of strike over the Christmas period in order to fight against local authority cuts. |
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Research reveals 'shocking' cuts to local services
10/12/2019 Hundreds of youth centres, libraries and public toilets have been closed due to council funding cuts, a trade union has warned. |
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Delays to pay claim talks branded a 'disappointment by union
07/11/2019 The biggest local government union has branded a delay to talks over their 10% pay claim 'a huge disappointment'. |
