John Swinney’s local office has been targeted by striking school staff in a bitter dispute over pay. UNISON members took the action over a pay offer they say is not enough.
Two other unions – GMB and Unite – accepted the offer from council bosses, but UNISON are holding out for more.
Although the dispute is between unions and councils, UNISON says the First Minister has the power to end the standoff with more money.
Schools in his Perthshire seat have closes as a result of the row and the striking workers are now demonstrating outside his constituency office in Blairgowrie.
UNISON Perth and Kinross branch secretary Stuart Hope said: “John Swinney is the one who can end this dispute as most council funding comes from the Scottish government.
“Education staff do not want to close schools. They all love their jobs and would prefer to be supporting children. The way to solve this is for Cosla, the Scottish government and the union to sit down in the same room and talk. Staff need to be valued and treated equally to other public sector workers with the same level of investment.”
Swinney has condemned the targeting of his constituency as “utterly unacceptable”. He said: “My constituents have been singled out for treatment just because their MSP is First Minister, and I find that completely unacceptable.”
The pay deal accepted by the two other unions gives workers either a 3.6% increase or a 67p per hour rise, whichever is higher, with the pay deal now imposed on workers.
Don’t miss the latest news from around Scotland and beyond.Sign up to our daily newsletter.