PCS

On 2 June the government informed PCS, and two other civil service unions (FDA and Prospect), that it is prepared to allow departments the “discretion” to pay an additional £1,500

The key industrial debate at PCS conference (23-25 May) concerned the travel of direction of the national dispute. The conference was unanimous that we must continue with the action if we are to resolve last year’s and this year’s pay; win proper job protection; stop overpaying on pension contributions; and protect redundancy payments. That’s where the unanimity ended. Delegates were faced with motions that fell into two broad camps; ones which would give the National Executive Committee (NEC) discretion as to when to call all-members action, if at all, and the others which were more...

The Annual Delegate Conference of the PCS union is 23-25 May. This will be the second "in person" conference (though branches can attend by Zoom) since the lessening of the pandemic. We are hoping therefore that delegate numbers will be up from last year, and begin to head towards pre-Covid levels. Regardless of the number of people attending, in many ways, it will be one of the most significant conferences held since the formation of the PCS union. That is of course, because we are in the middle of a live dispute with the Scottish, Welsh, and UK governments over pay, job security, redundancy...

Overall, we're pleased with the results of our re-ballot.

Our re-ballot to renew our industrial action mandate in the national civil service dispute closes on 9 May. We’ll know the result on 10 May. I know there’ll be a huge majority for continuing action, but I think it’ll be close in terms of meeting the turnout threshold. If we do miss thresholds, I think we’ll be duty bound to re-ballot as soon as possible. There’s no question of bailing out of the dispute. If we renew the mandate, we have to intensify our action. We need to learn the lessons of the first six months of the dispute, where solid selective action was punctuated with very sporadic...

The return to strikes by nurses’ union RCN, from 8pm on 30 April until 2 May, is an important opportunity to revive and accelerate the pay fight in the NHS. Unite members in various NHS trusts, including several ambulance trusts, will also strike on 1 and 2 May. If GMB members in the NHS also reject the pay offer in their ballot closing 28 April (possible, despite the GMB leadership recommending acceptance), their members in ambulance trusts and elsewhere in the NHS could also strike, officially from mid-May, but sooner if GMB members refuse to cross other unions’ pickets. Although junior...

We are now in the run-up to the all-members’ strike on Friday 28 April. All the indications are that the strike will be well supported. That will be the most effective answer to the government’s imposition of a pay settlement, which will see average pay increases of 4.5%, with a potential extra 0.5% for the lower paid. In the context of 10% continuing inflation, and even higher food inflation, the government is imposing a “real income” pay cut on members. In parallel with the run-up to the all-members’ action, activists and the union staff are still working on the reballot (20 March to 9 May)...

The government has now imposed a pay settlement on the UK civil service for 2023-2024. Under this, departments are able to make average pay awards up to 4.5% and have the flexibility to add an additional 0.5% for lower grades. Those figures are an improvement on the 2% that the government was considering giving us up to December last year but even the “improved” settlement is well short of our demands and gives us nothing additional for 2022. We are told that there will be “dispute resolution” meetings with PCS but given the government’s announcement, we have to assume they will refuse to...

The civil service is the only major part of the public sector where workers haven’t been made an offer as yet. Teachers, NHS workers, local government workers have all had offers, many of which were poor but at least negotiations have happened. We know that ministers are considering an offer but it is very frustrating that they not as yet agreed to make an offer. Therefore, we have to increase the pressure on them. There is another all-members strike planned on 28 April, and we’re continuing selective action in various departments. Those strikes remain solid, but it’s clear to me that we’ll...

We want to see an escalating programme of national, all-out strikes called, with the strike period increasing month-by-month (two days, then three, then four, etc.)