Civil servants walk out over jobs cull

Last month's national one-day civil service strike - the first in 11 years - saw huge support for the action by an estimated 200,000 civil servants.

The action was a response to swingeing job cuts announced over the summer by chancellor Gordon Brown, who wants to see 104,000 civil service jobs axed.

In addition, PCS members face a number of other threats, including proposals to cut sick pay entitlements, threats to pension provision and the chancellor's plan to relocate 20,000 civil service jobs outside London and the south east.

In a joint statement, general secretary of the PCS civil service union Mark Serwotka and union president Janice Godrich declared the strike "a fantastic show of strength" and "an historic day for PCS and the public services we provide."

The strike involved workers at 160 government departments and agencies in picket lines, rallies and events throughout the country. Services affected included driving licensing, jobcentres, benefit offices, museums, galleries, the court service, tax credits and tax collection.

At a rally in London, Serwotka was joined by other union leaders including Dave Prentis of the UNISON public services union, Andy Gilchrist of the Fire Brigades Union and Bob Crow of the RMT rail and transport union.

Serwotka said that hundreds of thousands of PCS members were taking a stand "against arbitrary cuts which will decimate services we all rely on from the cradle to the grave."