Birmingham schools hit by strike over equal pay

Thirty-five schools in Birmingham will be hit by strike action as workers walk off the job over delayed equal pay.

Support workers from thirty-five Birmingham schools will take part in strike action during SATS exam weeks, scheduled for Tuesday 14 May, with around 1500 workers expected to join.

Including teaching assistants, catering staff and grounds maintenance workers, the strike action is in response to Birmingham City Council’s delays in dealing with equal pay claims made by female workers at the authority.

GMB organizer Alice Reynolds said: “Birmingham’s equal pay crisis only ends when council bosses hand back the wages they stole from female workers. Our members mean business. They will not be made to pay for a crisis they did not create, and they are not willing to accept more broken promises. A strike is always a last resort, but these workers have been pushed to the brink.”