New proposals from Wiltshire Council for issue which caused traffic warden strikes
There will be a ballot in September
The issue over standby, callout and unsocial hours policies which caused multiple strikes by traffic wardens has got a set of new proposals by Wiltshire Council.
The local authority say changes have been made after formal negotiations with three unions, UNISON, Unite the Union and GMB.
The unions said many staff members, including traffic wardens, were facing a pay decrease in the original plans which included things like no longer having Sunday as an "unsocial working day".
However, under the new proposals this will be maintained and the council say they have outlined a four-year pay protection arrangement to mitigate the impact for staff on their take-home pay as a result of the changes to the unsocial hours times and rates.
There will also be service specific webinars for staff to ask questions.
Union members will be balloted on these plans next month.
Terence Herbert, Wiltshire Council Chief Executive, said:
“Following formal negotiations with the three recognised unions – Unite, GMB and Unison – we are pleased to now have a set of proposals that the unions can take to their members, and we are hopeful of a positive outcome.
“We’ll also be sharing the proposals with our staff over the coming weeks to ensure they clearly understand the details.
“Our focus has been on finding a resolution to these issues through discussions and not industrial action, and the whole working group has actively helped to shape the proposals that are now being taken forward.
“The proposed changes to out of hours payments will include arrangements to protect the pay of impacted staff for four years.
“The proposed changes will help to ensure our policies are standardised, fit for purpose, financially viable and support delivery of our Business Plan, while ensuring our staff are fairly and appropriately rewarded.
“We expect the results of the union ballots by early October.”