Work and Pensions hit by two-day national strike

The PCS civil service union claimed a very high turnout for two days of strike action at the end of January.

The union called the strike in protest at government plans for major cuts in staffing at the Department for Work and Pensions.

Hundreds of workplaces around the country were affected by the action including job centres, benefit agencies, pensions centres and the Child Support Agency.

Around 15,000 jobs have been cut from the Department’s 100,000 plus workforce so far and another 15,000 are to follow by 2008 if the government sticks to its “efficiency” plans. In all 70,000 jobs across the civil service are under threat.

PCS general secretary Mark Serwotka said: “With staff leaving the Department at the rate of 1,000 a month we are seeing delays and backlogs as jobs are cut and the work remains.”

The union is calling for talks with management to jointly assess the staffing levels needed to provide proper services.