Coventry civil servants to strike on Wednesday

[dutchman]

HUNDREDS of civil servants will go on strike in Coventry tomorrow (weds) in protest at job cuts and pay levels.

Members of the Public and Commercial Services Union will stage the protest outside their government department buildings across the city.

The day of action will include city workers at DWP, Department for Education, DVLA, Land Registry and HM Revenue and Customs.

They will be among 27,000 civil servants taking action across the West Midlands.

The PCS, which chose to strike to coincide with Chancellor George Osborne’s Budget, accused the government of refusing to negotiate over cuts.

It also comes after HM Revenue and Customs announced 281 enquiry centres could close next year, including offices in Coventry, Rugby and Nuneaton.

Jim Malloy, of civil servants PCS union, said: “We are suffering along with colleagues in other departments. On top of that there was a recent announcement by HMRC of potential closures which could mean there will be no enquiry centres in Coventry and Warwickshire.

“It would also affect jobs - we have at least ten people working at the enquiry centre in Coventry - but also the service we provide to the public.

“We have dealt with millions of face-to-face enquiries at the centre. If this closes people will be forced to use the voluntary sector which is subject to cuts themselves.

“This strike shows we are serious about the issues and prepared to take action. No-one likes to take strike action. It not only affects services to the public but it affects our pay.

"Some of our lower paid members can’t afford to lose a day’s pay but they are worried about their jobs long-term.

“We want the government to listen to us. They are refusing to enter into talks with us.”

Andrew Lloyd, PCS Midlands Regional secretary, said: “The government has left PCS members with no other option but to take this action, to persuade them to start talking to us.

“This government are treating these hard working civil servants who care about the services they provide with contempt.”

He added: “We have lost 4,500 civil service jobs in the Midlands in the last two years, how can it be good for this region if we lose at least as many as that in the next two years, and those remaining have no disposable income because their wages are so poor.

“At the moment we cannot even get the government to talk us about these cuts. If they won’t talk we have to take action.”

[dutchman]

Coventry civil servants 'claiming benefits to get by'


Coventry civil servants picket outside Coventry Jobcentre

HUNDREDS of civil servants went on strike in Coventry and Warwickshire yesterday to protest about government cuts.

Industrial action to coincide with the Budget being delivered by Chancellor George Osborne involved staff at the Job Centre, in New Union Street, Coventry Crown Court, Land Registry offices in Canley and the UK Border Agency base at Coventry Airport.

The Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union organised the strike amid claims civil servants have seen a 15-20 per cent fall in living standards due to government policy in recent years.

They point to changes including a pay freeze since 2010, increased pension contributions from next month as well as raising the retirement age to 68.

George Osborne announced in the House of Commons yesterday the public sector pay cap of one per cent – below the current 2.8 per cent rate of inflation – will be extended by one year to 2015-16.

Protesters outside Coventry’s Job Centre yesterday said many staff working there rely on working tax credits – which are also being targeted by government reforms.

“The cost of living is going through the roof and we’re not even standing still,” said Matt Pryce, the PCS branch secretary at the Department for Work and Pensions in Coventry and Warwickshire.

“We’re working in the system, but we’re also having to claim benefits through the system to get by. It’s a crazy situation.

He added: “I’ve been working for the DWP and involved with the union since 1986 and industrial relations are at an all-time low.

“This is the first time that they just won’t talk to us. No one here wants to lose a day’s pay. We would rather get round the negotiating table.

“We’re just fed up of austerity. We are the victims, we didn’t create the problems with the financial markets but we’re being asked to pay for them.”

Strike action also took place at government buildings across Warwickshire, where the PCS has 2,500 members.

The action comes after HM Revenue and Customs also announced 281 advice centres could close next year, including in Coventry, Rugby, Stratford and Nuneaton.

Jim Malloy, of the PCS union based at Coventry’s tax office at Sherbourne House, said: “This means the public won’t be able to turn up and get advice, and at the same time they are attacking our terms and conditions.

“There’s a £120billion tax gap in terms of what should be being collected and what is being avoided. We believe there’s an alternative – to invest in public services.”