Scotland faces school closures and waste disposal strikes as union leaders have reached an impasse over a local government pay dispute, it has emerged.

Scotland's largest local government union Unison has revealed it is preparing for strike ballots of 30,000 schools staff across Scotland's 32 council areas saying the same mistakes over pay made last year are being repeated. The dispute is also putting the Cycling World Championships in Glasgow in August at risk.

Last year's dispute saw piles of rubbish build up in city centres as waste workers went on strike.

Strike action that led to local authorities notifying parents that schools would be shut was only averted a matter of days before the closures were due to take place after more money to pay staff was found. Some local authorities had already told parents not to expect schools to be open.

The local authority group COSLA increased the pay pot for Scotland's 250,000 local authority workers from around £400m to £600m allowing the lowest paid staff to get a pay increase of around 10 to 11% following the intervention of then First Minister Nicola Sturgeon.

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COSLA leaders are due to meet on Friday in what is the last meeting prior to summer recess.

Union leaders say it is the last opportunity to agree an improved offer that might avert further industrial action after staff rejected a 5% pay offer.

But Unison sources say that there is no new offer on the table and that COSLA leaders had previously voted down a motion from trade unions calling on them to approach the Scottish Government for more funding to improve the offer.

COSLA said it had made a "strong" offer that showed the value it placed on its staff.

Now a strike ballot is being pencilled in for during the summer and Unison leaders warn that could lead to a strike that would close schools across Scotland some time after the schools break but before the October holidays.

Before that there is the prospect of a waste services strike in three local authority areas - Stirling, Perth and Kinross and Highland - with a ballot currently underway. Any strikes could be brought in as early as August 2.

Some 87% rejected the local government pay deal in a consultative ballot of over 80,000 Unison local government workers with 90% of those voting in favour of taking some form of action up to and including strike action.

A Unison source said: "COSLA continually state that they do not have sufficient funds to improve the offer but have now said they will not approach the Scottish Government for additional funding to improve the offer.

"We are at an impasse. There is no offer on the table and then we are in the summer recess when there will be no more discussions. We are exactly where we were last year when the whole thing had to be sorted out at the 11th hour.

"We are on the verge of where we were last year with waste pile-ups and schools closing."

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It is feared that key components of the 2023 UCI Cycling World Championships in Glasgow in August will be under threat in a first wave of action in the wake of pay talks breaking down.

Unison has already begun a ballot for strike action which is due to close on July 14, involving key staff in Glasgow City Parking, Glasgow Life and the Glasgow Emirates Arena.

A joint trade union action is likely to cause serious disruption to the cycling championships in Glasgow where staff working at the Emirates Arena, the venue which holds the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome and which is due to be the focal point of many of the events.

Unions say the withdrawal of cycle technicians and workers who keep the arena running will raise "serious questions over whether events can continue or not".

The world's greatest cyclists are due to converge on Glasgow to compete in 13 disciplines under one banner for the first time.

Events will take place across Scotland between 3-13 August with track races being held at the velodrome.

It will mark the first time the different world championship events have come together to form a mega event.

The Unite union has already served notice to 32 Scottish councils that strike ballots in the pay dispute are open and are due to close on July 31.

Thousands of key council workers within the schools and early years services are taking part including janitors, cleaners, caterers, classroom assistants and administrative staff.

GMB Scotland members working in schools and early years education are also to vote on strike action after failing to see an increase in their pay offer.

Last year's dispute saw the spectre of schools and nurseries shutting as industrial action was due to spread to thousands of education staff in 12 council areas.

It was resolved just four days before the first school strikes were to begin and after local authorities had already told parents that children would have to remain at home.

It raised questions about how the pay rise was able to be financed after then First Minister Nicola Sturgeon and the then Deputy First Minister John Swinney insisted there was "no more money".

Last year, council body COSLA initially offered workers 2% then 3.5% and then 5% – all rejected outright by unions - before a revised offer in September was tabled.

It meant the lowest paid are getting a flat rate offer of £2,000 - a pay rise worth around 10 to 11%.

The development came after some ten hours of a summit meeting chaired by Nicola Sturgeon in the wake of a near two-week bins strike.

A COSLA spokesman said: “The reality of the situation is that as employers, council leaders have made a strong offer to the workforce.  A strong offer which clearly illustrates the value Councils place on their workforce, and it compares well to other sectors. It recognises the cost-of-living pressures on our workforce and critically, it seeks to protect jobs and services.

“While the offer value in year is 5.5%, the average uplift on salaries going into the next financial year is 7%.  Those on the Scottish Local Government Living Wage would get 9.12% and those at higher grades, where Councils are experiencing severe recruitment challenges, would see 6.05%.

“It is an offer which recognises both the vital role of the people who deliver our essential services across Councils every day and the value that we, as employers, place on them.  Crucially, it also raises the Scottish Local Government Living Wage by 99p to £11.84 per hour and sets out a commitment to work with our Trade Unions to develop a road map to £15 per hour in a way that protects our workforce and services we deliver.”

A Scottish Government spokesman said: “Local government pay negotiations are a matter for local authorities as employers and unions – the Scottish Government has no formal role.

“Despite UK Government cuts, the Scottish Government has provided a further £155 million to support a meaningful pay rise for local government workers, which has been taken into account in the pay offer already made by COSLA.

“The Scottish Government urges all the parties involved to work together constructively and reach an agreement which is fair for the workforce and affordable for employers.”

What is the pay offer?
A 5% rise for staff on all spinal column points on the local government pay scale from 1 April 2023.
Further rises of 45p an hour for the lowest paid staff (those on spinal column points 2-18), and 2.5% for those on points 19-43, from 1 January 2024.
An additional 1.5% rise, from 1 January 2024, for those on points 44-64, who currently earn roughly £28,000 – £38,000.
An extra rise, from 1 January next year, of 1% for those on points 65 and above, a group that includes most social workers.
Overall, staff would receive 5.51% more on average in 2023-24 than 2022-23 and their salaries would be 7.02% higher at the end of the financial year than at the start.
For a social worker earning £38,585, their end of year salary would be 6.05% higher (around £41,900).