Hundreds of thousands of council and school workers could walk out on strike after their union vowed to ballot members over what it called an unacceptable pay offer.
UNISON general secretary Andrea Egan used her address to the union's local government conference in Brighton yesterday to urge up to 200,000 staff in England, Wales and Northern Ireland to back strike action if employers refuse to improve their 3.3% offer for 2026/27.
‘Strike action is our leverage,’ Egan told delegates. ‘It’s our way of saying to employers we won’t just accept crumbs from the table. We won’t accept lower wages, and we won’t accept real-terms pay cuts.’
Potential walkouts could hit schools, social care, waste collection, libraries and housing services. Balloting begins on 9 July.
UNISON warned that with inflation forecast to hit 3.5% by the end of 2026, the offer amounted to a real-terms pay cut. The union says local government workers have lost around a quarter of their pay since 2010.
‘Staff are fed up of being expected to do more for less in their pay packets. They deserve fair wages and properly funded services that restore the communities they serve,’ Egan added.
