Civil servants set to strike over bullying and RSI

Eight thousand civil servants at Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) have voted for industrial action in a dispute over health and safety risks arising from new working practices.

Members of PCS public service union were balloted after the introduction of a management technique called "LEAN", which involves breaking down roles, stripping out work that does not "add value", and questioning whether work needs to be done.

The union claims that this has created a culture of corporate bullying, deskilling and health risks arising from excessive workloads.

PCS general secretary Mark Serwotka said: "Members are quite right to be angry that they are being forced to meet unreasonable targets, which in some cases is even leading to repetitive strain injury."