Staff hold strike rally at castle

The strike has hit several essential council services How will the strike affect you?

Striking Highland Council workers have staged a rally at Inverness Castle during a 24-hour walkout over pay.

Comhairle nan Eilean Siar staff have also taken industrial action, however, schools on the Western Isles were not affected as pupils go back on Thursday.

Industrial action has closed 17 secondary schools, 24 primaries and 41 nurseries in the Highlands.

The strike also saw main roads quieter than usual with fewer public service staff making peak time journeys.

Council staff gathered near the statue of Flora Macdonald which stands in the grounds of the castle.

Earlier, Munro Ross, from the joint trades unions at Highland Council, said strike action was regrettable but it was the last resort for low paid council staff.

Ali Maclennan, local Unison branch secretary, said: "They want to do what they do best - provide vital services to the people of the Western Isles..

COUNCILS FACT FILE Highland Council has responsibility for 183 primary schools, 29 secondaries, 156 nursery units and six special schools Recycling centres and Corran Ferry linking Nether Lochaber to Ardgour were not operating on Wednesday The comhairle said services for the most vulnerable, including residential and home care, were exempt from the action

"We apologise for any disruption to those services, and we hope the public knows that our members need to be treated fairly."

Across Scotland, about 200,000 members of the GMB, Unite and Unison unions were due to take part in the strike after rejecting a 2.5% deal over the next three years.

The local government umbrella group Cosla said councils could not afford to increase the pay offer.

Scottish ministers have urged both sides to resolve the dispute.

A second strike by government civil servants with the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union was also due to take place on the same day, following a similar strike last month.

The dispute centres around a 2% pay increase, which its members say amounts to a pay cut while inflation rises above 5%.