On March 15, 2023, a rally was held in Trafalgar Square, London, in support of health workers and teachers who were on strike. The rally was attended by a woman dressed in health worker
scrubs, who held a placard in solidarity with the strikers. The strike was part of a long-running dispute with the British government over issues such as pay, pensions, redundancy terms, and job security.
According to the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union, more than 100,000 British civil and public servants are set to join another all-out strike on April 28. The union has stated that 133,000 civil and public servants will take part in the April 28 strike, with workers in the Passport Office continuing on strike into early May.
The PCS union has emphasized that its members are not backing down in this dispute. PCS General Secretary Mark Serwotka has called on the government to take notice of the escalating action and resolve the dispute by putting money on the table. The Passport Office workers have been on strike for five weeks until May 6.
Earlier this month, thousands of civil servants across several government departments staged a series of walkouts in solidarity with waves of other employees, including railway workers, doctors, and teachers. The employees demanded better pay rises to cope with the cost-of-living crisis. The strikes have been causing significant disruptions across the country, and the government has faced mounting pressure to address the workers' demands.
The strikes have highlighted the growing frustration among workers who have been hit hard by the rising cost of living in the UK. The cost of living crisis has been exacerbated by the government's austerity measures, which have resulted in pay freezes and cuts to public services.
The strikes have also underscored the need for more robust protections for workers' rights. The PCS union has called for an end to precarious work, which has left many workers without job security or benefits. The union has also called for an end to the gender pay gap, which disproportionately affects women.
The government's response to the strikes has been mixed. While some ministers have acknowledged the workers' grievances, others have criticized the strikes, saying they are unnecessary and damaging to the economy. The government has also been accused of failing to negotiate in good faith with the unions and ignoring the workers' demands.
The strikes are likely to continue until the government agrees to meaningful negotiations and addresses the workers' demands. Until then, workers across the UK will continue to fight for their rights and demand better pay, job security, and working conditions. The strikes are a reminder that workers' rights are human rights and must be protected at all costs. Photo by CrisNYCa, Wikimedia commons.