pcsleedshmrc Pay, strikes

Supporting the RMT Rail Strikes

Across the country rail workers are striking for better pay and protection from job cuts. Rail workers, like Civil Servants, kept the country running during the pandemic. Many of them face pay freezes that amount to real-terms pay cuts, as pay does not match rising cost-of-living and inflation. They have also been told that there will be redundancies on the horizon.

Does this sound familiar?

Of course, the pay freezes don’t hurt rail bosses, who take home pay packets worth millions of pounds. Of course, it isn’t the bosses facing job cuts. And of course, it’s the workers, not the bosses, being told to make do with their pay and weather the cost of living crisis, despite the face that some low-paid rail workers are facing homelessness despite working six-day weeks.

Predictably, the press is working its hardest to demonise the rail strikers, stating they are disrupting the country by preventing rail services from going ahead. This of course, is the point of strike action: if they weren’t disruptive, no-one would care. Ultimately, it’s only fair for an employee to withhold their work if they aren’t being paid enough to live and if their workplaces aren’t safe, and this is what striking RMT workers are doing.

PCS wholeheartedly supports rail workers taking action. Activists from PCS Leeds branch will be visiting the RMT picket to show solidarity with rail workers, and we encourage our members to show solidarity in whatever way they can: tweet about it, bust one of the many myths going around, share the infographic below, be public about your support, and don’t buy the Sun, the Daily Mail, or any of the papers demonising striking workers—their millionaire owners personally benefit from a system that thrives on unfairness and inequality, so why on earth would they support workers asking for fair pay and conditions?

This September, we will be balloting our own members to take industrial action, meaning in autumn, it could be us on the picket. The papers, Tories, and bad bosses will try to pit workers against each other, so we need to build a national movement of solidarity between unions and workers across the UK, support industrial action where we see it, and campaign for fair pay and conditions for everyone.

They say give back. We say fight back.

pcsleedshmrc Campaigns, News, Pay

We demand better: demonstration on 18 June

After 2 years of devoted service and hard work to keep our country afloat during the pandemic, Civil Servants have been thanked with the scandalous news that they will be subject to 90,000 job cuts.

This is unacceptable. And it doesn’t end with the Civil Service: living standards are plummeting while costs are soaring, wages are stagnating across the board, and workers’ rights across the UK are under threat—just take a look at what they did to workers at P&O.

On 18 June, workers are uniting in London to deliver a clear message to this government: we demand better. This is a march and rally, organised by the Trades Union Congress, telling our government we need:

  • Real pay rises and a real living wage
  • A ban on dodgy working practices like zero hour contracts and fire and rehire
  • Taxes on the billionaires and energy companies, whose wealth and profits grew during the pandemic while we suffered
  • An end to racism and discrimination at work
  • An end to the government’s agenda to destroy workers’ rights and unions

Activists and reps from PCS Leeds will be travelling to London on 18 June to let our voices be heard. We ask our members to join us.

Transport will be arranged by PCS so members can attend without cost on the day, so if you are a member and want to attend, please get in touch with one of our reps, who will keep you informed. We cannot talk about this using R&C systems, so please be mindful of this.