UNISON has vowed to fight the attack on its Swindon branch office holders, threatened with redundancy by the Conservative controlled council.
The council voted on 23 February to remove funding for two staff, who currently undertake trade union work and represent thousands of UNISON members.
At the same time, it is spending £1.3m on private consultants.
Assistant general secretary Roger McKenzie told the branch’s AGM, taking place yesterday and today: “It’s unbelievable that the council is willing to pay nearly one and a half million for private consultants yet withdraw funding for union representatives.
“The council has a duty of care for its staff,” he added. “Stopping funding for union representatives who provide invaluable support and negotiate on behalf of thousands of union members across the Council is short sighted.
“This is an ideological and political attack on trade union rights. By withdrawing funding for our trade union reps, they are not just attacking UNISON representatives; they are attacking the rights of workers everywhere.”
And UNISON has vowed to meet that attack.
In an earlier message to the branch, general secretary Dave Prentis pledged: “The whole union is standing with you in this dispute, and we will challenge any employer who attacks UNISON and our trade union rights.
“At a time of redundancies, restructuring and threats to terms and conditions, our members need a strong trade union and employers should know we will resist these attacks with every means possible and hear our message – attack one of us and you attack us all.
“Together we will defend our union and defend our right to speak up for our members.”
As well as the £1.3m spent on consultants – “people who will be unaccountable to the local electorate,” as regional secretary Joanne Kaye noted – UNISON pointed out that 38 councillors claimed £399,027 in allowances over the last year, plus £40,000 to pay for a political advisor, rather than the advisors being paid by their political parties.
Meanwhile in Southampton, where the union had to defeat a council attempt to derecognise it last year, Conservative council leader Royston Smith has said he wants to follow Swindon and end the funding of council staff on full-time release as union activists, as well as throw unions out of offices owned by the council.
UNISON regional organiser Andy Straker called the threat “beyond belief” and promised: “We will fight it”.
Email a message of support to UNISON Swindon at unisonswindon@swindon.gov.uk