Wiltshire Council issues reminder that parking restrictions remain in place during strike action

Wiltshire Council is reminding residents and visitors that parking restrictions and charges remain in place throughout the county during the forthcoming parking civil enforcement officers' strike.

GMB Union informed the council that some parking enforcement officers are planning to strike from Thursday 30 June until Wednesday 6 July.

During this time, people should pay for parking in council car parks and season tickets as normal and continue to adhere to any parking restrictions that may be in place - as council officers will still be patrolling and will be issuing Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs). The quickest and easiest way to pay is with the MiPermit smartphone app, which people can download to their device before they park.

The industrial action is over proposals to make changes to the council's current unsocial, standby and callout policies.

Terence Herbert, Chief Executive of Wiltshire Council, said: "We've seen some reports claiming that people won't have to pay for parking during the proposed strike period. This isn't the case, as we will still have officers working during that time.

"We are still working to resolve this dispute, and continue our discussions through a working group with the three recognised unions, Unison, Unite the Union and GMB. The aim of the current discussions are to agree policies that are standardised, fit for purpose, financially viable and support delivery of the council's Business Plan, while ensuring our staff are fairly and appropriately rewarded. There are no proposals to cut the base pay of any council staff.

"We are scheduled to attend an ACAS facilitated meeting with the GMB the day before this strike starts - but any outcomes of that meeting will need to be taken back into the working group for discussion with all three recognised unions.

"As we have been clear all along, workers' base pay is not being cut and no final decisions have been made on these proposals.

"We value our staff, and we will continue to listen to their views throughout this process."