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Some of Scotland's best-known galleries and museums are facing disruption as four unions stage a 24-hour strike over pay and conditions.Culture and Sport Glasgow, which runs the city's Kelvingrove Museum and the Burrell Collection, wants to freeze wages and cut overtime.
It claims the alternative is more cuts to services and redundancies.
The Unison, Unite, GMB and Bectu unions said they had no other option after talks to resolve the dispute failed.
Culture and Sport Glasgow is a charity which runs various facilities which used to be run by the city council.
As well as museums and galleries, it is also responsible for sports centres, community centres and libraries.
Unison's Glasgow branch secretary Brian Smith said all four trade unions were united in their opposition to Culture and Sport Glasgow.
"The trade unions have attempted to negotiate to persuade Culture and Sport Glasgow not carry out these attacks," he said.
"However, workers have been left with no option other than to use strike action in an effort to defend their pay and conditions.
"Our members provide culture and sport services across Glasgow and recognise the wide disruption that strike action will cause."
The four unions involved in Friday's strike are also planning a second day of action on 6 May.
'Protect jobs'
Some community centres due to be used as polling stations could be affected by the action, but Culture and Sport Glasgow insists no polling stations will be closed.
The charity said it was disappointed that Friday's action was going ahead.
A spokesman for Culture and Sport Glasgow said: "Around one-in-seven of our staff voted for strike action and the trade unions are fully aware that the public sector is not immune from the current financial crisis.
"We have consistently made it clear that our priority is to protect both services and jobs.
"In order to make the savings necessary to achieve this, we must change the way we work - or be forced to consider job cuts."This article is from the BBC News website. ? British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.