Equal pay talks in Aberdeenshire have reached a hiatus, despite some progress. With the deadline of April 2007 looming for councils to have established an equal pay and grading scheme, the Scottish authority has been locked in talks with unions to reach an agreement. A meeting between the council and the three main public service unions Unison, GMB and T&G last week was described as ‘productive'. Unison the union with the biggest membership at the council – 3,000 members among the authority's 11,000 staff – accepted an offer from the council to sort out inequalities in pay for male and female employees. But members of the GMB and T&G both rejected the proposals in a ballot. T&G spokesman, Tommy Campbell, said: ‘We have adjourned from last week and no agreement has been reached. Unison members voted to accept the council's proposal but T&G and GMB members voted against it.' He added that T&G and GMB members had concerns about reductions in overtime pay such as double time on Sundays. A further meeting is scheduled later this month (February).
