Scotland faces mass strikes as more workers threaten strike action over pay

It comes as fears rose that cuts to nationalised ScotRail services which have been exacerbated by a rail dispute could last into 2024 as just 55 of a gang of 130 new train drivers aimed at settling a staff shortage are expected to be e trained up by the end of this year.

School staff, home care workers and binmen are among those expected to be involved in a targeted ballot for industrial action in a dispute over local authority pay in the next few weeks.

The offer to EIS members, similar to that presented to council staff and rail workers was tabled by local authority group COSLA and was unanimously rejected by the teachers representatives.

Prices in the UK have already risen by 9% over the last year - the highest rate of inflation for 40 years.

Des Morris, EIS salaries convener and chairman of the teachers’ side of the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers (SNCT), said: “With inflation running at 9%, COSLA is effectively offering Scotland’s teachers a massive pay cut at a time when the cost of living is soaring. This is completely unacceptable.

"The EIS Council has already agreed that we will move towards a ballot for industrial action should a fair pay settlement not be achieved. The clock is ticking; COSLA must move more quickly, and far more positively, if industrial action is to be avoided.”

One source from the public services union Unison said: "I suspect there is going to be a long period of industrial disputes."

Train operator, ScotRail confirmed it will slash services by nearly a third from next week due to a driver shortage exacerbated by two pay disputes involving the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) and Aslef unions after the rejection of a 2.2% pay rise.

There are concerns that the cuts will hit the hospitality industry as the last train for thousands of Scots from Glasgow and Edinburgh to several locations has been brought forward by hours.

ScotRail says the temporary but indefinite move to axe 700 services, which comes into play from Monday, has come as a result of the drivers pay dispute which has resulted in some refusing to take up the option of working rest days and Sundays.

The service is reliant on drivers doing overtime and work those days to keep trains running.

The driver shortages that have been exacerbated by the dispute lodged by Aslef have resulted in over 1000 train cancellations in the last 12 days.

It was suggested to First Minister Nicola Sturgeon that it might not be till 2024 before ScotRail is off the emergency timetable.

While she did not accept that, she confirmed that of 130 drivers that are being trained up to try and stop the need for rest day working, 38 drivers will be trained by the end of the summer, rising to 55 by the end of 2022 and to 100 "after that".

She said the next review over whether the measures will stay in place is not expected till June 3 and would not put a date on when all services would be restored.

She also declined to say whether the Scottish Government would provide compensation to businesses impacted by the reduced timetable.

The pay dispute surrounds train drivers, who having completed all training and a probation period are being paid some £52,000 per year - a rise of £3,640 (7.5%) in the past three years. Three years ago the pre-nationalised service was paying £48,360 to qualified drivers.

Three years ago ScotRail was paying £27,483 during the first year of intensive training. As a newly qualified driver the salary was £38,194, after six months £40,792 and after nine months £43,810.

The average salary of a nurse with four years or more in experience in Scotland is estimated to be around £30,000.

ScotRail said the temporary timetable was there "to provide greater certainty and reliability for customers", ScotRail said.

But the Night Time Industries Association warned that the cuts will hit the last train home for thousands of revellers.

NTIA Scotland, said: "The Scottish Government must urgently resolve this dispute or they will be putting at risk both Scotland's economic recovery and the future of many thousands of small businesses and jobs."

Football fans travelling to the Scottish Cup Final on Saturday have been warned of cancellations to train services because of the driver dispute.

The state train operator is warning fans travelling to the Rangers v Hearts final at Hampden to plan their journeys in advance.

Nicola Sturgeon told MSPs: "I absolutely accept that these temporary cancellations which are being made necessary by a pay dispute are disruptive. They are disruptive to individuals and they are disruptive to businesses. That's why it is so important that I stress today that ScotRail works hard to ensure that the temporary timetable is just that.

"It's not acceptable, it must get back to normal as quickly as possible. That is why we must see all parties get round the table and negotiate a fair and an affordable pay deal but also that ScotRail must continue the work that it is already undertaking to train more drivers so that the reliance on rest day working is reduced and eventually eliminated."

Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross said: “The SNP took over the running of our rail service on April Fool’s Day - but Nat-Rail is no joke for Scotland’s passengers.

“These cuts will also be devastating for businesses still reeling from the impact of the Covid pandemic. They are facing another lost summer.

“Last month, the First Minister proclaimed that nationalising ScotRail was a ‘new beginning’ that would deliver ‘a railway for the nation’.

“But after just seven weeks, nationalisation is already proving a disaster. As with the ferries, as soon as this government steps into sort things out, the problems get even worse.”

The ScotRail industrial action could start on July 11 at the earliest, with the Edinburgh festivals starting in the first week of August.

Unite, GMB and Unison are preparing to ballot members over strike action after COSLA refused to improve their wage offer for local government workers.

They have been going through the process of targeting selected groups of workers employed in all thirty-two Scottish authorities to ballot members in schools, home care and cleansing as early as June.

It comes after the public services union Unison confirmed an indicative ballot of council staff revealed an "incredible" 89.8% voted in favour of taking industrial action up to an including strike action over an "unacceptable" pay offer.

Unite says a similar ballot showed a "massive" 91% were prepared to take industrial action in response to the COSLA "failure" to put forward a fair and decent offer.

Pat Rafferty, Unite Scottish secretary said: "The cost of living has hit a 40-year high at 11.1%. Workers are increasingly angry at the derisory pay offers being made by companies and public bodies across Scotland."

A COSLA spokesperson said: “We are in active discussions with our trade union partners regarding their pay claim.”

The Scottish Government decided last year to take ScotRail under direct state control stripping Dutch state transport firm Abellio of the franchise three years early in the wake of continuing outcry over service failings and rising costs to the taxpayer.

It came after a 2018 winter timetable with the introduction of high-speed trains and new class 385 electric trains ushered in months of cancellations and disruption to services with much of it put down to staff shortages partly due to training to deal with the new trains and timetable.

The Scottish Government is now in charge of the rail operator, which was running around 2,400 train services each day through an arms-length company ScotRail Trains Ltd.