Glasgow culture strikes back

Nearly all museums and several arts venues across Glasgow closed their doors to the public on 30 April, as staff went on strike following a row with Culture and Sport Glasgow (CSG) over pay freezes and overtime cuts. With an annual turnover of over £100m, £70m of which is from Glasgow City Council, CSG was established in 2007 as the body responsible for overseeing arts, culture and sport across the city. Following a recessionary shortfall in funds, it has been tasked with cutting £3.4m from its overall budget this year. Promises that there would be no staff redundancies were upheld. Instead, CSG instilled a pay freeze and cut bank holidays, removing the right of workers to be paid overtime and be granted days in lieu for working public holidays. Four different unions (Bectu, Unison, Unite and GMB) negotiated with CSG to find alternative ways to make savings, but in the end staff from organisations across the city, including Tramway and Mitchell Theatres, Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, and Kelvingrove Museum, walked out “as a very last resort” in protest. As we went to press, further strikes were announced for 6 May, although CSG were clear that their proposals were the “only way jobs and services [could] be protected”.