A SECOND council meeting in Bath has been interrupted by the sound of “angry but determined” social workers protesting outside.
Thursday March 19 – dubbed a “day of action” by trade union Unison – saw some Bath and North East Somerset Council social workers take strike action and hold a picket outside the council offices at Keynsham Civic Centre.
In the evening, a huge protest of social workers gathered outside Bath Guildhall where the council was having its full council meeting.
Inside the council chamber, councillors had to turn up the volume on their microphones to be heard above the sound of the protest, which relocated to the back of the Guildhall below the council chamber’s windows when the meeting began.
It followed a similar protest which took place during a council scrutiny committee on March 9 discussing the changes to children’s social care.
Two separate issues have led industrial relations between the council and staff working in its children’s social care department to a low point. Team managers and deputy team managers have been in dispute with the council after pay regrading put them on the same level as some of the staff they manage.
Original plans for an 11-day strike were suspended after a council offer, but team managers and deputy team managers later voted unanimously to strike for a single day of action on March 19.
A Unison spokesperson said: “This dispute has never been solely about pay. It is about our progression, a workable and safe structure, and the ability to retain skilled and experienced staff.”
At the same time, many social workers and children’s services staff received letters telling them their role would be deleted as part of a major restructure of the department planned by the council – sparking the protests outside the Guildhall.
Social workers have told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that the restructure would reduce their capacity to do the vital work they do, from early intervention to supporting foster parents.
The restructure is partly driven by the government’s “families first” social work reforms, which require the creation of new multi-disciplinary family help teams so that families experience fewer changes in social workers. But this means reducing or completely deleting existing teams, such as the council’s Connecting Families team.
The Local Democracy Reporting Service understands that five people in the children’s social care department are at risk of redundancy, while all other staff should be able to continue working in the children’s services department – although this may mean having to move into a different role in a different team.
The word “deleted” comes from the technical language around consulting on redundancies and refers to job roles being removed, even if replaced.
A Unison spokesperson said: “The large demonstration on Thursday was a testament to how strongly workers and the wider community feel about this issue.
“The atmosphere at the protest was angry but determined. We are grateful to everyone who came out to support us, including the foster carers who gave such moving testimonies.”
In a statement ahead of the strike day, Bath and North East Somerset Council said it was “disappointed” that it was going ahead.
The council said: “The council greatly values its children’s team managers and deputy team managers and has worked hard to explore options to avoid industrial action, including holding extensive talks at Acas with these colleagues.
“We remain at the negotiating table to find a solution. Children and families are the priority for all of us and to that end we want to work through this to come to a resolution.”
John Wimperis, Local Democracy Reporting Service
Pictured, protesters outside Keynsham Civic Centre
Social workers in Keynsham ‘day of action’ protest
