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NURSERY NURSE STRIKE ACTIONlatest on April 21 2004COSLA Spokesman Councillor Frank Russell said: "We welcome what is clearly a positive move towards the ultimate resolution of this dispute. However there are still detailed negiotiations to take place at local level and we would not want to say anything further at this sensitive stage that might jeopardise the outcome of these negotiations. "We hope that this welcome move can mean negotiations take place with nursery nurses leaving the picket line and going back to do the job we all value." COSLA regrets immensely the disruption this action is causing to parents and children in many parts of the country. We genuinely believe that the proposals developed at a national level on a new grading structure, model job outlines and a career development framework for nursery nurses presents a fair basis for settlement for this group of local government staff. There are two key reasons why the proposals are not acceptable to UNISON. We have developed a framework for councils to develop their own proposals based on the needs of the service they provide but UNISON want to see a one size fits all binding agreement on councils. They maintain that nursery nurses working 32 hours a week over 39 weeks in the year in schools and classes should be paid the same salary as those working full time in 52 week a year social work establishments and irrespective of any differences in the duties they are performing. All we are advocating is that nursery nurses get paid the rate for the job they do for the hours they work It is not possible for COSLA to impose a national solution to this dispute - it must be resolved by employers and trade unions sitting around a table and agreeing a way forward in each of the 32 local authority areas based on the make up of the service each council provides. A number of councils have already done this and the rest had opened up discussions but UNISON locally is now refusing to participate. It has been made clear however by UNISON that even the recommended proposals on grading are not acceptable to UNISON and that £9.33 an hour equating to £18,000 a year ( full time) for an experienced, competent nursery nurse does not meet their needs. They want the starting salary of a qualified teacher. Local authorities have a responsibility to reward all their staff fairly, which is why they are currently undergoing grading reviews across the country. It would undermine this process to give in to industrial action and pay beyond what an objective evaluation process considers the role of nursery nurses to be worth. We continue to urge UNISON to get around the table with their employers locally (who are actively trying to engage with them) to resolve this issue and we will continue to make that plea right up to and throughout any further industrial action. |
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