Civil servant strike ballot gets underway

Thursday 4th February 2010

A national strike ballot of civil servants will begin today over a dispute about changes to a national compensation scheme.

The Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union said it would ballot 270,000 of its members working for the civil service and its related bodies over "unilateral changes to the civil service compensation scheme".

The ballot will run between and February 4th and 25th. The union says the Cabinet Office's changes – which relate in particular to redundancy pay - "will see staff robbed of up to a third of their entitlements if they are forced out of their jobs and will lead to the government cutting jobs on the cheap".

The government is looking to save £500 million through these changes, based on the number of jobs it has cur over the last three years.

The PCS also announced that it would be lodging papers today for a judicial review, arguing that the changes need to be implemented through agreement with the trade unions rather than imposed.

Mark Serwotka, PCS general secretary, said: "We had hoped we could avoid a strike ballot, but the government and the Cabinet Office's insistence on ploughing ahead, combined with their unwillingness to find an agreement has left hardworking people feeling let down and betrayed.

"Not only will this rob the people who keep this country running of their jobs and entitlements, but also the public of their dedicated civil and public servants who provide services from the cradle to the grave."

The ballot involves civil and public servants from across the UK including: Jobcentre staff, tax workers, coastguards, border agency officials, passport workers, court staff and driving test examiners. ADNFCR-1783-ID-19594533-ADNFCR

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