Council draws up contingency plan to ensure polling goes ahead

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Council bosses in Renfrewshire have been forced into drawing up contingency plans to ensure Thursday's elections do not descend into chaos.It comes after Unite union chiefs said they would pull vital staff during polling as they reach a stand-off during a tense pay dispute and accused the authority of playing "mind games" with workers.Around 200 tradesmen and women and apprentices working for the authority's Building Services division will down tools, say Unite bosses.They say their members play a key role in ensuring election day polling goes ahead, including setting up and dismantling polling stations, as well as delivering vital ballot boxes to the count in time.But the members, covered by Renfrewshire Council's local authority craft agreement, earlier voted unanimously to back strike action.Now Unite confirmed workers will down tools from 8am on May 3 to 1pm on May 6 - covering the election run up, as well as polling day and the subsequent count.

An overtime ban for members will also run in tandem. Union leaders had earlier warned of "growing anger" amongst staff over their treatment by Renfrewshire Council.

They have been further fuelled by an offer described as "below inflation" during pay negotiations. It come amidst rising bitterness targeted against the authority after bosses informed of Unite members' intention to strike gave the order that all craft workers be removed from working during the Scottish Local Government elections, which will see Renfrewshire residents go to the polls to return new councillors on Thursday.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Unite’s craft workers are rightly angry not only at the below inflation pay offer at a time of punishing living costs but at the potentially