Sunderland Care Workers Vote Overwhelmingly for Strike Action in Equal Pay Dispute

More than 300 care workers employed by Sunderland Care and Support (SCAS) have voted overwhelmingly in favour of strike action in a long-running equal pay dispute involving Sunderland City Council.

The indicative ballot, organised by GMB Union, closed on Friday, with the result paving the way for a formal, legally binding ballot for industrial action in the coming days.

The dispute centres on claims that female care workers were disadvantaged after Sunderland Council outsourced the service. According to GMB, the workers lost access to the Local Government Pension Scheme and were paid less than male colleagues carrying out work of comparable value to the council.

The union argues that the case forms part of a wider equal pay issue affecting female-dominated roles across local government, including teaching assistants and catering staff.

GMB has a separate equal pay claim against Sunderland Council relating to these wider groups of employees and says the outcome of the SCAS ballot could have implications for its campaign involving other council workers.

Joyce Guthrie, GMB Organiser, said:

“This is an historic result in the fight for equal pay.

“The overwhelming mandate for action should be a wake up call to Sunderland’s leadership. They can’t avoid this issue anymore. Carers are done waiting.

“If Sunderland doesn’t step up and make this right, they will be letting down not only hundreds of working women but also those they care for every day.

“The response from the public and the wider council staff to the SCAS campaign has been inspiring.

“On the back of this result GMB will now also ballot the wider council staff for industrial action on equal pay.”

The development comes amid continued debate across the adult social care sector about workforce pay, employment conditions and the challenges of recruiting and retaining care staff.