Glasgow City Council and the trade union Unison have ended negotiations over a long-standing equal pay dispute. The council has announced it will proceed with a controversial plan to dismiss and rehire thousands of non-teaching staff under new contracts starting January 1. This decision follows Unison's refusal to ballot its members on a new pay proposal that the council had previously offered. Unison has said it will conduct a member ballot once negotiations conclude and has warned against rushing workers into an unfair agreement. Justice Secretary Neil Gray urged both the council and the unions to return to the negotiating table to find a resolution. He expressed support for the Scottish Government's principles of fair work but did not provide further details on the specific challenges facing council workers. Gray also cautioned that outside comments could hinder the negotiation process. Colin Edgar, the council's director of corporate governance, stated that the council had exhausted all options to resolve the dispute. He claimed the rejected pay offer would have avoided the need for dismissals and included back pay for staff. Edgar criticized Unison for what he described as a betrayal of its members by not accepting the proposal. Mandy McDowall, a regional organizer for Unison Scotland, emphasized that council workers should not be pressured into an unfair deal and called for continued dialogue. She reiterated that Unison would ballot its members once the talks are completed. Graham McNabb, an industrial officer with the union Unite, called on the council to remove threats from its proposed pay structure, including the use of fire-and-rehire tactics, and warned of a strong union response if the council proceeded with such measures. Scottish Labour leader Michael Marra condemned the council's approach as a "despicable way to treat working people" and compared it to tactics used by the UK Conservative Party. He urged all parties to negotiate a deal and to ensure that workers are never threatened in this manner again. While First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has previously criticized fire-and-rehire as an "appalling practice," Justice Secretary Neil Gray emphasized that the matter should be resolved locally and that external commentary could be counterproductive to the negotiation process.