Talks between Brighton and Hove City Council and the GMB appear to have broken down, and the union has moved towards industrial action. The single status talks came to an abrupt end last week, when the union claimed the authority failed to come up with an offer to mitigate losses of frontline staff. At the start of the negotiations, which began in July, the council revealed that 823 employees would face a pay cut, but this number was cut to 700. However, the union claimed that following the council's proposed reduction of allowances, the figure had risen above 1,200. GMB branch secretary, Mark Turner, described the talks as the worst negotiations he had ever been involved in. ‘We are now in a formal industrial dispute and have informed the council's chief executive of the 10-day notice period,' he said. Workers will vote on strike action on 15 October, and Mr Turner said the union was confident that industrial action would go ahead. A council spokesman said a second and improved offer had been made. ‘The negotiations are, in our view, important for resolving this difficult issue, and they still have some weeks left to run,' he said.