Library to close on Saturday due to strike action

Bradley Stoke Library.

South Gloucestershire Council (SGC) has announced that Bradley Stoke Library will be closed tomorrow (Saturday 28th September) as a result of industrial action by staff.

Members of the UNISON union have voted for a one-day strike in response to changes to council policies on enhancements and allowances paid to staff, which are being introduced on 1st October.

From that date, the council  will no longer pay a time-and-a-half enhancement for staff who have to work on Saturday as part of a normal working pattern. Staff working overtime on Saturdays (i.e. above 37 hours) will, however, continue to receive the enhancement.

The change is part of SGC’s ‘transformation programme’, which is aiming to achieve annual savings of £43.9m by 2014/15, to which the disputed changes will contribute approximately £200,000.

A ballot of nearly 190 UNISON members at SGC resulted in an “overwhelming” vote to take industrial action, says the union.

Tomorrow’s planned performance by the Bradley Stoke Community Singers which was due to take place in the library as part of the Discovery Festival has been cancelled.  The group will, however, make an appearance at the MS Therapy Centre’s Autumn Fair on Saturday 19th October.

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9 comments

  1. I can understand them feeling aggrieved in one way, but those in retail and other employment roles that have to work on a Saturday do not get enhanced pay. My son who works in retail does three weekends in four, Boxing Days, New Years days, and never gets the enhanced rate because its part of is working week.

  2. K, Perhaps it’s more a case of your son and everyone else in retail etc being had over by these billion pound profit making retailers for working on weekends and bank holidays, I used to work for a supermarket and a bookmaker when both paid enhanced hours, and double time on Sundays.

    Then it became too expensive for said retailers to pay us these premiums, and it became take it or leave it, we have to be grateful to have a job these days.

    Maybe if we all stood together like these council workers we’d stand a chance, as the profits continue to rise at the top of the chain, less so at the minimum wage end of the scale where wages are also topped up for the retailers by benefits funded by taxpayers, but they always want more profit. Every little helps.

  3. D, with spending cuts across the board where would you recommend savings be made other than making weekend pay flat with the rest of the week? Or would you prefer to pay higher taxes?

    I don’t necessarily agree with the way government cuts are being handled, but if you have to cut somewhere, then why not on bonus Saturday pay?

  4. We need to make cuts where possible and this was one way rather than shut down some youth club or old peoples day care center. Cuts need to be made to pay off our debt that the last lot got us into .

  5. Nemo. Saturday Bonus pay? I didn’t think it was a bonus? Try an alternative, have a look at the Robin Hood Tax, largely painless, with massive potential, all parties should explore, Google Bill Nighy and Robin Hood Tax and ye shall find. Anyway, not going to harp on, just sayin’.

  6. D
    Have looked at what you said the Robin Hood tax it comes from the USA and it isn’t a very good idea according to the money men

  7. Happy – It’s a bit deeper and wider than that, but the money men would say that wouln’t they??!!

    They are back to normal, and they do get a BONUS!!

  8. Love strike action and it’s counter-productivity – people wanting to use the library probably just got frustrated and looked for alternatives – and realized those alternatives are better… meaning more lost customers – meaning library closures. Vicious circle – just look at what the post office is doing to itself!

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