Wiltshire traffic wardens have announced a seven-day strike to take place in two week's time.

GMB union has called a strike of all Civil Enforcement Officers in the county from Thursday, June 30 until Wednesday, July 6.  

This follows two days of strikes which took place last month.

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Wardens on strike will not be issuing Penalty Charge Notices for unlawful parking on their strike days, or enforce parking charges in council car parks, losing the council up to £30,000 per day.  

However, the council says that parking restrictions and usual car parking charges will still be in place during the strike.

The union members are opposing a pay cut of 10 per cent for traffic wardens, amounting to £2,000 a year. 

GMB says Wiltshire Council is seeking to save £800,000 by withdrawing contractual unsocial hours payments from almost 350 staff, including social workers, and care workers. 

According to the union, council representatives did not rule out “fire and rehire”, which the union says would effectively sack the affected staff and re-engage them on a different contract with lower pay.

Keith Roberts, GMB Regional Organiser, said: “Our members are at the end of their tether. After the last two strikes the council agreed to talks with ACAS, but they have twice pulled out of agreed dates that they themselves suggested and were in our diaries. 

“They pulled out of talks on June 7 and June 21. They have now agreed to June 29, but this is a whole six weeks after they originally agreed to talk, and there is no guarantee that they won’t pull out again, as they already have done so twice. 

“In the meantime, in the middle of a cost of living crisis, our members have the terrible threat hanging over their heads of a huge pay cut. This is impacting their well being and several are off sick with stress. The council need to start acting like grown-ups, and take the proposed pay cuts off the table. 

“To make matters worse, the council have refused to take Fire and Rehire off the table. This is the disgraceful practice, of sacking your own workforce to force through contractual changes. 

“This is a red rag to a bull for our members, who will not voluntarily accept a pay cut, and are disgusted that the council refuses to rule out the rogue option of Fire and Rehire, which is usually the last resort of only the most unscrupulous employers. 

“Wiltshire Council needs to understand that this seven-day strike will be a major escalation from GMB, and we will ensure that it hits them hard in the pocket, costing them up to £200,000 in lost income.”

Terence Herbert, Chief Executive of Wiltshire Council, said: “GMB Union has informed us that some officers in our parking enforcement team are planning to strike from Thursday, June 30 until Wednesday, July 6. Parking restrictions, including all usual car parking charges, will still be in place during that time.

“Discussions between the council and the three recognised unions – Unison, Unite the Union and GMB – over proposed changes to terms and conditions are ongoing, and GMB’s claim that we refuse to take the option to ‘fire and re-hire’ off the table is unhelpful. 

“While the ability to make changes to policies through a process of dismissal and re-engagement is one of a range of options open to any employer, it is not something that is currently being looked at or discussed. 

“We always aim to work with our recognised unions to find alternative ways forward, but GMB’s misleading claims are likely to cause distress to staff. A more constructive approach would be for them to engage meaningfully in working group discussions, as the other unions are.

“It is incorrect to say that we have ‘pulled out of talks’ with ACAS. We have been working with ACAS to find a date that suits the council, GMB and ACAS, and we are committed to holding these talks at a time when all parties can attend.

“We are disappointed that the GMB has chosen to escalate this strike action, and we will be putting in place measures to minimise both customer and financial impacts, including continuing to enforce parking restrictions.

“As we have been clear all along, workers’ base pay is not being cut and no final decisions have been made on these proposals. However, we do need to make changes to ensure our policies remain fit for purpose, financially viable and support delivery of our business plan, while ensuring our staff are fairly and appropriately rewarded.

“We value our staff, and we will continue to listen to their views throughout this process.”

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