Council workers threaten to strike over outsourcing plan

STRIKE action has been threatened by unions fighting council plans to put scores of the local authority's services into the hands of private companies.

City leaders are hoping to save millions by outsourcing some of its high-profile services, such as bin collections and school meals.

But the move has provoked an angry response from unions and opposition politicians who fear the initiative is privatisation by the back door and will push down standards.

City leaders last month revealed they are facing a £92 million black hole in the council finances over the next four years due to tough Government efficiency targets.

In an e-mail to staff obtained by the Evening News, council chief executive Tom Aitchison warned "the unprecedented scale of the required savings" means a fundamental review of the local authority's services was needed.

All of the unions representing the council's 17,000 workers – which includes Unison, Unite, GMB and UCATT – have banded together to fight the scheme.

They today warned they will ballot their members for industrial action if there are redundancies.

Opposition politicians described the outsourcing plans as "wholly unacceptable" but city leaders said the proposals will deliver the best results for the council and its workers.

Unison's Kevin Duguid, who is secretary for the joint union campaign against the plans, warned that any threat of redundancies would be met with massive opposition and ballots for action.

He added: "At a time when investment to stimulate Edinburgh's economy has never been more crucial, we are facing unprecedented cuts which will tear the heart out of our local services.

"The unions say this is 'back to the future' by returning to the defragmented service provision that led to councils taking over services in the first place.

"We all know this is not efficiency, it just makes profits at the expense of workers and damages continuity through short-term deals.

"It is time to get back round the table and talk sensibly about how we can work together."

The outsourcing scheme would see companies come in and manage or reorganise council departments, with them splitting the money saved with city leaders.

Other ways of reorganising services, such as setting up arm's-length operating trusts, like Edinburgh Leisure, are also under consideration

A 20-strong "long list" of services they have identified as suitable for being put out to tender includes customer service areas such as the council's network of local offices, buildings maintenance, street sweeping and the council-owned museums and galleries.

The city's Labour leader Andrew Burn said: "Such a mass-privatisation of council services would be wholly unacceptable and we will strongly resist these attempts to 'outsource' a huge swathe of local public services in Edinburgh."

City leader Jenny Dawe said they were only at the beginning of the process and would consult widely. She said: "I am confident that through the competitive dialogue process we will get the best results for the council, its workforce and the city."