City council facing equal pay dispute with union calling on members to lodge claims

Members of the GMB union have this week begun a dispute against Coventry City Council over “significant concerns regarding the valuing and payment of roles at the authority”.

The city council has been dubbed a “pay discrimination hot spot”, as union members argue that certain roles, predominantly low paid and undertaken by women, have been “consistently overlooked for pay-boosts” compared to roles predominantly undertaken by male workers.

These roles have been described by the union as the “backbone of essential council services”. They include School Teaching Assistants, library workers and care support staff.

Michelle McCrossen, GMB Organiser, said: “Our members aren’t going to accept business as usual when it comes to valuing the work of women at Coventry City Council.

“We believe there are significant issues with how the council have structured the payment of certain key roles, and as part of this dispute GMB members will be lodging formal legal claims to tackle it head on.”

McCrossen added: “Coventry City Council is fast becoming a pay discrimination hot-spot, with the work of roles predominantly done by women consistently undervalued by council top brass.

“Any worker at the council who is worried this could impact their role should join GMB union today and add their voices to the campaign for pay justice.

“GMB union is crystal clear; we will not accept pay discrimination and do everything we can to campaign to end it."

A spokesperson for Coventry City Council said: “We are aware that the GMB union has raised a dispute with us but, at this stage, we only have general details on the issue so are seeking a number of clarifications on the points raised.

“There are established processes when a union dispute is raised, and these systems have now started, including meeting union officials to discuss this further.

“Coventry City Council employs around 4,500 staff and value them all equally. We are acutely aware of the duties around equal pay and people will remember this was a major issue for us as we attempted to resolve the long-running dispute with bin lorry drivers earlier this year.”

Lottie Winson