Strike action to close schools in First Minister John Swinney’s constituency has resulted in a “credible” offer for council workers, union Unison said.

Non-teaching staff in Perth and Kinross walked off the job for two weeks as part of a pay dispute and schools in the area were closed as a result of the action.

Unison, the largest of three unions representing local authority workers in Scotland, said the strike had resulted in “new commitments” from councils and the Scottish government.

GMB and Unite previously agreed to a proposal that would see staff pay increase by 67p per hour or 3.6%, whichever is higher.

Unison said talks following the strike resulted in the government and local authority Cosla agreeing on a new pay protocol, with a minimum hourly wage of £15 and a shortened working week.

Cosla announces new commitments “meaningfully enhance and strengthen the package offering”.

Unison will consult its members on the improved agreement and recommend that they wrap up negotiations this year and move on to substantive talks for 2025-26.

Collette Hunter, Unison’s head of local government for Scotland, said: “Perth and Kinross members working in education institutions, and all our members who rejected the previous offer, have received these new commitments from the Scottish government and councils.

“The determination and action of our members has secured the path to a credible wage offer before April 2025.

“We also got the Scottish government to come into the chamber with us and Cosla to seriously discuss £15 an hour, the reduction of working hours per week and the whole situation around the council’s finances.”

Katie Hagmann, Cosla’s resources spokeswoman, said it was a priority to “work hard with union partners to find a solution” to the dispute.

He said: “We have listened to Unison’s requests regarding non-fee elements and I am pleased that we have been able to formally respond to a number of their proposals today.

“We have written to all three unions to support and improve the already strong pay offer that has been agreed by GMB and Unite and is on the table.

“The letter demonstrates the shared determination of Cosla and the Scottish government to make meaningful progress in key areas of concern to Unison.”

Emphasizing that the pay rise “remains at the absolute limit of affordability” for councils “without scope to increase its value”, Ms Hagman added that the additional elements “meaningfully enhance and strengthen the package on offer”.

He said: “We hope this will lead to an agreement being reached with union partners and the conclusion of our wage negotiations.

“We have respectfully asked Unison to consider the strengthened proposal and suspend future industrial action plans.”