Hundreds of members of the union Unison working at social care charity Enable Scotland are staging two days of strike action this week as part of their ongoing pay dispute with the Scottish Government.

This is the second period of action this year by care workers at the charity, who walked out earlier this year after nine in ten of its Unison members voted to strike. This had been the first time in a decade care workers in Scotland had taken part in strike action.

This latest action saw union members walk out on Tuesday and they will again strike today (Thursday, 11 September).

During protests in Glasgow and Lanarkshire this week staff will hand over symbolic invoices to the Scottish Government’s cabinet secretary for health and social care Neil Gray, calling for payment of their outstanding earnings.

The union represents around 650 workers at Enable Scotland.

Unison says workers at the charity have been underpaid by £5,500 since April 2022 amid a “broken promise” by the Scottish government to match carers’ pay with NHS rates.

“These care workers have been underpaid for far too long,” said Unison general secretary Christina McAnea.

“Going on strike is the last thing they want to do, but they’ve been left with no other option. They deliver vital care to some of the most vulnerable people in the country, yet their wages simply aren’t enough to live on.

She added: “The Scottish government must do the right thing by better funding social care and showing workers that they value them by paying them fair, decent wages.”

Unison Scotland regional organiser Jennifer McCarey said: “No care worker takes the decision to strike lightly. But after years of broken promises, low pay and with a sector in crisis, they’ve had enough.

“Staff are taking a stand not just for themselves but for the people they care for every day.

“Only substantial improvement to the hourly rate for care workers in Scotland will save the sector from disaster.

“The Scottish government must invest in social care and deliver fair pay to the workers who provide these essential services.”

Unison says that while Band 2 NHS workers are paid £13.22 an hour, those in the same banding outside the health service are paid just £12.60.

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