Protests planned as Glasgow City Council prepares to shed 3,000 posts

By The Press Association9th October 2015News ScotlandGlasgow / Lanarkshire, Jobs, Local Authorities, News Scotland

Protests are being planned against 3,000 job losses at a city council, with unions warning of “horrendous” cuts across the country in the coming months because of enforced savings.

Glasgow City Council is expected to have to make savings of £103 million over the next two years, saying it estimates up to 3,000 staff will leave and not be replaced.

The Labour-controlled authority, which employs 19,500 workers, said in the summer it will make savings from not replacing staff rather than redundancies.

Unions are staging a demonstration on October 29 in Glasgow warning that workers and services run by the council were “on their knees”.

Benny Rankin, regional officer of the GMB union, said further cuts will be a “disaster” for services and jobs.

“We call on elected politicians in the city to use all available financial mechanisms to hold-off any further cuts whilst leading a fight to win more money.

“The council could use some of its reserves and borrowing powers, supported by the legal financial process of capitalisation, to fill the two year £103 million hole.

“This would allow time and space to build a mass campaign of elected councillors, trade unions, user groups and local communities with the objective of winning more money from the Holyrood and Westminster governments.

“There is plenty of money in our economy – it is just in the wrong hands or lying in the bank accounts of big business. The trade unions will support any council politician or council political grouping who adopts this strategy of no more cuts.”

A GMB spokesman said the union feared job losses in Glasgow were the start of “horrendous” cuts across the UK because of reductions in government spending.

Councillor Paul Rooney said: “Glasgow needs to make estimated savings of £103 million in the next two years. We’re working hard to find those savings while ensuring people still receive the services they need, and without resorting to compulsory redundancies.

“Glasgow has been hit with a disproportionate share of the Scottish cuts over the last seven years and I welcome the unions’ call to oppose further cuts to Glasgow.

“The proposal to borrow to avoid savings would not be legal, but we want to work with our colleagues in the union movement to balance the budget while protecting services and jobs.”