A TRADE union boss has called for a masterpiece to be sold to meet Glasgow's equal pay bill.
General secretary of the GMB, Gary Smith, said that council chiefs could raise £60 million by selling Christ of St John on the Cross by Salvador Dali in Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, reports the Daily Record.
Mr Smith told the Record: “The council’s residual equal pay liability is getting bigger by the day and the final bill will probably run into the hundreds of millions once again.
“If the council really thinks it can fix this alone then it had better start making plans to flog the Dali, because there is no way this discrimination is going to be paid for off the back of hard-pressed workers in a cost-of-living crisis.”
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The priceless painting brings tourists to the West End museum and is one of the most valuable paintings in the city's collection.
An equal pay deal worth £500 m was agreed between unions and the council in 2019 but unions say that a new grading system has not yet been implemented and claim that discrimination against predominantly female workers remains.
Mr Smith says unions have urged council chiefs to call the Scottish Government for financial support in covering the cost of the hefty bill.
But not everyone backs Mr Smith's idea.
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Green Party councillor, Martha Wardrop said the party will not "resort to flogging off" the city's cultural assets. She said: "
“The process of settling Labour’s unequal pay legacy must remain a priority whoever forms Glasgow’s administration after May’s elections.
“Green councillors will work for a fast and fair settlement, but we will not resort to flogging off the city’s cultural assets to do that. We’ll keep pressing for the funding and powers councils need to invest in local services and pay workers well.”
A spokesperson for Glasgow City Council told the Daily Record: “We’re negotiating with trade unions and others representing claimants. We will only know the cost of settling claims once we have a deal – and that will determine any financial strategy.”
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