Redundancy terms spark 2-day strike
CIVIL servants staged a two-day strike this week which saw 350 Wakefield staff walk out over controversial cuts to redundancy pay.
Job centres, courts and tax offices were hit by the strike action on Monday and Tuesday by the Public and Commercial Services Union.
The action, which involved 23,000 staff in Yorkshire and Humber, was called after the government announced employee compensation changes which could cut redundancy settlements by a third.
With spending cuts and public sector job losses expected in the coming years, the government has been accused of forcing through the changes to cut jobs on the cheap.
A civil servant with 20 years' experience on a salary of 24,000 would lose 20,000 in redundancy pay, claims the PCS.
PCS national officer for Yorkshire and Humber Stella Dennis said: "The action had a big impact. Offices were either closed or had to operate on a reduced service.
"The government is effectively ripping up contractual arrangements for civil service staff at the same time as claiming that the very large bonuses for bankers need to be paid for contractual reasons. It's clearly one rule for them and another for civil servants."
More talks were planned to decide on any future action, she added.
Tessa Jowell, the government's cabinet office minister, claimed that around 70 per cent of PCS members did not take part in the action, which proved the right deal had been struck over redundancy payments.
She said additional protection for lower paid staff was ensured during consultations over the changes.
She said: "This means that the vast majority of civil servants who earn 20,000 or less – nearly half the entire workforce – will in fact be little affected by the changes."
The package was still generous and brought civil service staff ito line with the rest of the public sector, she added.
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Weather for Wakefield
Wednesday 23 May 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 12 C to 23 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: North east
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: 10 C to 21 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: North east
