Angry council staff were out demonstrating in York city centre today, just three months after the damaging walk-out by museum workers.

But although they talked of strike action again, the City of York Council believes this dispute will be resolved without recourse to industrial action.

About 70 manual and office staff massed in freezing temperatures outside the Guildhall, St Helen's Square, this morning as the first day of negotiations over the controversial Single Status Agreement began.

Union officials are battling to avoid a cocktail of measures, such as abolishing overtime rates of pay, being implemented.

The council says introducing the Single Status Agreement, which aims to smooth out differences between the conditions of white and blue collar workers, will cost about £800,000, and it needs to claw back the money somehow.

Peter Household, Unison convenor, said: "There is strong pressure from the membership for strike action. I am going in to this meeting today with hope, but I am not optimistic."

Peter Berry, assistant chief executive of City of York Council, said striking would be unlawful for the protesters. Unlike the museums dispute, which was open-ended, it has already been agreed that if this matter cannot be resolved within three months it will automatically go to arbitration by an outside body.

He said: "There is an agreed framework. Strikes are not an option. The task of both ourselves and the unions is to enter into negotiations with an open mind and with a willingness to look at all possibilities.

"At this meeting, we will be explaining the ways in which we have arrived at the estimated cost of implementing the agreement and asking for their suggestions or ideas. We can then jointly come up with the best way of implementing the agreement.

"The council is determined to ensure that services to its customers do not suffer as a result of having to find this money and we are very conscious of the fact that local government is under severe financial pressure."

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.