STAFF at a leading social care charity have voted in favour of strike action over proposed 20% pay cuts.
Employees at Quarriers, who care for some of Scotland’s most vulnerable children and adults, have agreed to industrial action after it was revealed that some workers may lose as much as £400 a month.
The cuts, which come as charities throughout the country are feeling the pinch in the current economic climate, will result in some staff pay packets being reduced by 23%, while 560 workers will suffer a loss of 10%.
Unison members were balloted on strike action and 76% of those asked voted in favour of the move.
Stephen Brown, branch secretary of Unison Quarriers, claimed the cuts will create poverty among staff.
He said: “The attacks Quarriers is making on our members are unprecedented. No-one can cope with a 23% pay cut.
“William Quarrier set up Quarriers in the 1870s to help underprivileged children, not to use wage cuts to drive staff into poverty.”
Mr Brown added that a project for young homeless people, a residential school and several projects involving vulnerable adults would be the worst hit in the strikes.
However, he added that emergency cover will be put in place “because we want to punish the management, not the service users”.
Unison claims the charity has also proposed cuts to sick pay and an increase in pension contributions.
Officials added that, following the ballot results, they offered to take the ongoing dispute to arbitration through Acas but Quarriers declined the offer.
Simon Macfarlane, regional organiser for Unison, said that staff do not want to strike but feel they have now been left with no alternative.
He said: “Strike action would have a massive impact as our members work across all sectors of the organisation providing services to young people through to adults with learning disabilities.
“The staff members obviously are very reluctant to go on strike because they don’t work for an organisation like Quarriers because they are motivated by money but because they care about the people they support.
“However, the result of the ballot shows that our members feel they have no option and we believe any strike action will be solidly supported. A three-to-one vote for strike action must surely send a message to Quarriers that its proposals are unacceptable.
“We call on Quarriers to get back round the table and re-engage all their staff. Let’s take this to Acas and see if it can be resolved.”
Quarriers chief executive Paul Moore said the pay cuts are vital to avoid compulsory job losses.
Mr Moore said: “This course of action is vital to protect jobs. We considered a number of alternatives including a proposal by Unison that would have led to almost 200 redundancies. We simply could not accept a proposal resulting in job losses.
“I understand it is difficult for anyone to accept a reduction in their salary. However, avoiding redundancies is our priority. The majority of staff will see their salary reduce by 3%. Staff whose salary is reduced by more than 3% will receive a payment of up to £1000.”
He added: “Robust plans are in place to ensure continuity and high standard of services are maintained should its members take action.”
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