Campaign news

Solidarity with PCS: Support strike on Budget Day!

24th March 2010

Over 250,000 members of the PCS union will be taking further strike action on Budget Day 2010, Wednesday 24th March. This follows two days of action on 8th and 9th March to defend the Civil Service Compensation Scheme (CSCS).

The government is trying to make it easier and cheaper for whoever forms the next government to cut civil and public servants. The result would be poorer services delivered to the public and hardworking civil and public servants losing out.

With all the main political parties planning deep spending cuts, the union fears that the cuts to the scheme will lead to tens of thousands of job losses on the cheap.

What you can do:

*Join the demos in Westminster or Manchester or Liverpool or the rest of the country.
*Get down to your local picket line on Wednesday 24th March to show your support
*Lobby your MP in support of PCS members
*Ask your MP to sign EDM 251 ‘Civil Service Compensation Scheme’ tabled by Katy Clark MP
*Invite a PCS speaker to your trade union branch, trades council or CLP meeting. Email (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

John McDonnell MP, LRC Chair, said:

“The Government has severely under-estimated the strength of feeling among civil servants and the anger that’s built up and led to this dispute.

“It is critical now that the Government returns to the negotiation table to avoid further disruption. This dispute could be resolved easily with flexibility from the Government.”

Katy Clark MP said:

“I think it is quite amazing that this is happening at a time when all the main political parties are calling for job losses.

“These are rights and entitlements which have been fought for over many years and if they’re lost now they won’t be got back easily.

“I think, quite understandably, civil servants are very angry about what is basically a cut in their wage packet.”

David Drew MP said:

“This is an outrageous intervention by Government relying on misinformation and spite rather than a fair policy on how we treat some of the lower paid members of the Civil Service who have given their life to public duty.”

Watch Mark Serwotka interviewed about the strike.
Watch: RMT TV video - solidarity with striking PCS civil servants
For more information see the PCS website.