The Civil Service Union warns of possible strikes by junior doctors and teachers | civil service

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The head of the largest civil servants union has warned ministers that a “coordinated and synchronized” strike across the economy will “escalate significantly” from January.

Mark Sirotka, general secretary of the Confederation of Public and Commercial Services (PCS), whose members working in passport control for Border Force held picket lines at Britain’s biggest airports on Wednesday, spoke out on a four-day strike set to last until New Year’s Eve.

He pointed to a series of possible new strikes as half a million teachers will vote to strike, as well as firefighters, and junior doctors could also vote to strike next month.

Sirotka told Sky News: “I think it is only a matter of time before all the unions realize that the government is the cause of these disagreements, so we will work even more closely together, and I think we will see coordinated and synchronized actions, and an escalation.”

“Because if we go into 2023 with millions of people in poverty at work, including government employees, something needs to be done. So either they negotiate, or I think we’ll see the action ramp up.”

So far only 4,000 to 5,000 CPC members have taken part in the current strike, but Sirotka said 100,000 members in all voted to strike.

Briefing reporters on Wednesday, Downing Street showed no sign that ministers were willing to make wage concessions. A spokesperson for the company said: “We want the strikes to end, we want people to agree on a fair wage settlement, but, as we’ve said before, what we can’t do is allow double-digit wage increases that henceforth include inflation, which will affect the amount of money that people will have in the future.”

The spokesperson encouraged unions to resume talks with employers, adding that the prime minister wanted to see employers and unions “reach a fair deal”.

While Border Force staff have resumed work on salaries, jobs and working conditions, civil servants were called on Wednesday to help the military cover striking workers at airports including London’s Heathrow and Gatwick, as well as Birmingham, Cardiff, Glasgow, Manchester, and the port of Newhaven.

While the previous Border Force strikes, which lasted from December 23-26, caused minimal disruption as they fell during a period of low passenger traffic, union leaders said the dispute could drag on for six months if the government refuses to negotiate.

Meanwhile, members of the Transport Employees Association (TSSA) on Great Western Railway and West Midlands trains joined a rolling series of strikes by the union at various operators that began on 23 December, striking from noon on Wednesday until 11.59am on Thursday.

West Midlands Rail said none of its services were running on Wednesday morning as a result of the TSSA strike.

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The movement adds to the chaos of the rail network, which was still struggling to recover from engineering work swept after the station express strike between Christmas Eve and Tuesday morning.

Nadine Ray, the TSSA’s organizing director, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, it was up to the government to change its stance and avoid further chaos. “It is the government that needs to change this situation, and we really want it to. We know that disruption is frustrating for people.

Things haven’t changed since before Christmas regarding a deal. It remains the government’s gift to ensure that employers can negotiate freely and can work out a deal that is acceptable to our members and affordable to employers.”

Rural vehicle inspectors and payment officials have also staged strikes since Dec. 13, and they are expected to continue their industrial strike until Jan. 16.

Network Rail workers are set to resume strikes next week, just as people return to work in the new year. RMT union members will strike about wages and working conditions from January 3-4, and from January 6-7.

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