Civil service strikes continue
WORKERS, JUNE 2007 ISSUE
Civil servants continue with their campaign to protect pay and public services in the face of government determination to cut costs. The union of Public & Commercial Services (PCS) has voted to carry on with its challenge to the government, and to work with other unions, such as Unison.
This year PCS held two successful one-day strikes on 31 January and 1 May, linked to limited overtime bans and publicity activity. The campaign started in response to Chancellor Gordon Brown's intention to cut central government expenditure in real terms. He wants to reduce the number of jobs significantly and hold wage rises well below inflation. These plans cover a six-year period; it's not a short-term reaction.
So far the Cabinet Office has tried to ignore the action, hoping that the union campaign will run out of energy. There are many different pay negotiations, and many different closure plans, making a single campaign hard to run. Even so the PCS conference this May endorsed the strategy. Some sections doubted that this was well enough focused, but the majority of delegates believed they had to continue with industrial action.
Local fights continue as well. Last month coastguards voted for action over low pay. The Maritime & Coastguard Agency offered rises of 1 per cent to 2.5 per cent; this is less than inflation and ignores pay comparison with other emergency workers. PCS members in the agency voted 4 to 1 in favour of withdrawing from non-emergency work.