Scottish Councils Face Fire and Rehire Claims Over Contract Changes

Hey, so there’s some drama with local council workers. Aberdeen and West Dunbartonshire councils want to change contracts. The GMB union is really unhappy about it. They see it as “fire and rehire” tactics. The union thinks the councils could lose funding.

They might breach employment guidelines, costing millions. Aberdeen wants to cut the work week to 35 hours. This could hurt wages and pensions, says the union. No new staff would be hired, either.

West Dunbartonshire wants to add holidays to annual leave. The GMB worries about frontline workers’ pay. This especially hits social care staff, they said. They get paid extra for working holidays. The union is accusing the councils of bullying workers.

They threatened to withdraw Fair Work First status. West Dunbartonshire paused contract changes after this. They hope to reach an agreement with staff. Both councils say they need to save money.

Aberdeen thinks the shorter week prevents layoffs. They changed their proposal after union feedback. They are still consulting with unions and staff. They really want agreements to be reached.