Cracks are appearing in the united front of public sector unions bargaining for a better deal pay deal. On Monday (1 October), T&G members of Unite union voted to accept the revised deal of just under 2.5% after months of wrangling with the employers. National organiser for public services, Peter Allenson, said: ‘This is a clear result from our members, but equally, it comes with a clear message that it has been accepted grudgingly rather than being embraced.' Union members voted by 57% to accept the offer which had risen from an original pay increase of 2% . The GMB union was also expected to announce the result this week of its ballot. But the biggest public sector union, Unison, is still holding out for a better offer and is balloting members for two days of industrial action this month. A Unison spokeswoman said: ‘We are about to start a consultative ballot for industrial action.' It follows a call by union bosses last week for local government employers not to turn to local pay bargaining in future as a means of cutting costs. Unison's head of local government, Heather Wakefield, said splitting pay bargaining into regional or individual sections could undermine the gains made in equal pay. The Local Government Employers carried out a consultation over the summer on how pay and benefits should be delivered in future.
