Civil service union members vote overwhelmingly in favour of strikes

Civil service union leader Mark Serwotka has warned of “prolonged” industrial action “reaching into every corner of public life” after members voted overwhelmingly in favour of strikes over pay and conditions.

The Public and Commercial Services (PCS) ballot for strike action in the UK civil service received an average ‘yes’ vote of 86.2% across the areas balloted – the highest in the union’s history. Around 100,000 civil servants are thought to have voted in favour of strike action.

A total of 126 employer areas voted in favour of strikes and met the 50% turnout threshold legally required for industrial action. The average turnout across all balloted areas was 51.6%.

The PCS is calling for a 10% pay rise for civil servants, along with better pensions, job security and and no cuts to redundancy terms. Its national executive committee (NEC) has written to the Cabinet Office demanding “meaningful negotiations”.

The union said its NEC would agree a “programme of industrial action” at its meeting on November 18th if it did not receive “substantial proposals” from the government.

The PCS said the action could impact several government departments including border force officials working for the Home Office, driver examiners employed by the Department for Transport and staff in job centres working for the Department for Work and Pensions.

PCS general secretary Serwotka said: “The government must look at the huge vote for strike action across swathes of the civil service and realise it can no longer treat its workers with contempt.

“Our members have spoken, and if the government fails to listen to them, we’ll have no option than to launch a prolonged programme of industrial action reaching into every corner of public life.

“Civil servants have willingly and diligently played a vital role in keeping the country running during the pandemic, but enough is enough. The stress of working in the civil service, under the pressure of the cost-of-living crisis, job cuts and office closures means they’ve reached the end of their tethers.

“We are calling on the government to respond positively to our members’ demands. They have to give our members a 10% pay rise, job security, pensions justice and protected redundancy terms.”