NURSERY NURSES in Dundee, Angus and Fife will take indefinite strike action next month in the latest stage of their long-running dispute over pay.

Nursery nurses have voted by 81% to 19% to move to a campaign of all-out strike action.

More than 6000 nursery nurses were balloted in the Unison vote and there was a 68% return.

The impending action is due to go ahead at the beginning of March, although official dates will not be released until the employers are informed.

Parents and their children will face further disruption, which will leave them without day care services. Many parents will have to take time off work to look after their children.

The union negotiating on behalf of the nursery nurses say it was the only option left in a bid to end the pay dispute with local authorities, which has caused months of disrupted nursery education across Scotland.

Two one-day strikes by nursery nurses in Dundee have taken place since the start of the month.

Nursery nurses claim that, with an annual salary scale ranging from £10,000 to £13,800, they are long overdue a pay review.

A recommendation to councils by the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities would see the top salaries for nursery nurses increase to £18,000 but Unison has claimed they would have to work more than 600 hours extra in a year to get that much, with the result that some would be earning a lower hourly rate than at present.

That has been disputed by the council, who insist that assurances have been given that staff in Dundee would not lose out even if they opted to continue working the present 32.5 hours a week over a 39-week year.

Unison Dundee branch secretary Rory Malone said yesterday nursery nurses in Dundee felt they were left with no alternative but to take further strike action.

“Nursery nurses have responded to what they felt is unreasonable pay offers by CoSLA and voted to take further action which will take place in early March,” he said.

“Due to CoSLA’s refusal to make a national settlement nursery nurses have once again been forced to strike.

“Employers will receive official notification of the strike dates first before they are announced publicly but it will be an indefinite strike until the dispute is resolved.

“CoSLA say there isn’t going to be a national settlement. Whether you’re working for the fire service or the police you are paid the same throughout the country.”

Nursery nurses in six local authorities—Stirling, Perth and Kinross, South Lanarkshire, Aberdeen, Shetland and the Highlands—have all resolved their disputes.