Falkirk Council leader 'disappointed' in latest pay offer to council workers

dailyrecord.co.uk:

The leader of Falkirk Council has said she is disappointed in the offer that was made to council workers on Friday at a special meeting of COSLA.

Councillor Cecil Meiklejohn said that anything short of five per cent "is not credible" as the three trade unions involved in the dispute - Unite, Unison and the GMB - rejected the latest offer of 3.5 per cent rise.

That means strike action is still very much on the cards in Falkirk and across Scotland. READ MORE: Falkirk bins will go unemptied for eight days as council workers strike In Falkirk, waste workers who are members of Unite are due to start eight days of industrial action on August 24.On Friday, the GMB union confirmed that its members in waste services would also be walking out, with strikes from Friday, August 26 to Monday, August 29, and Wednesday, September 7 to Saturday, September 10.There was a slim hope that an agreement would be reached on Friday, when COSLA and the unions discussed the offer of an extra £140 million that the Deputy First Minister John Swinney had put on the table.Falkirk Live brings you the latest headlines from Falkirk and beyond.But did you know all the ways you can stay informed with us?We share live news and exclusive scoops every day so make sure you're following us so we can keep you informed on all things Falkirk!That cash, however, was just enough to fund a pay rise of 3.5 per cent and while that was an improvement on the initial 2 per cent the unions said it was not enough.Mr Swinney has said councils would be expected to find the rest of the cash for any higher offer.He said: "Without the ability to borrow or change tax policy, this will have a significant and ongoing impact upon our fixed budget that ministers are taking steps