Trade unions to discuss coordinated ‘day of action’ across public sector

Trade unions are to meet to discuss holding a coordinated “day of action” across the public sector in an attempt to maximise pressure on the government to give workers a better pay deal.

Unions representing staff in the NHS, railways, education and civil service were meeting on Tuesday at the Trades Union Congress headquarters to examine the possibility of escalating the current wave of strikes by all of them staging a walkout on the same day.

The TUC’s invitation to unions to attend the meeting in London at 2pm says they will consider holding “a day of action in pursuit of fair pay for public service workers”.

The disclosure that unions are contemplating a significant ramping-up of strike action comes on the day the government plans to publish proposals to limit the impact of walkouts by enforcing “minimum service levels” in key sectors; proposals that have been heavily criticised by Labour and the unions.

Unite and the RMT are thought to be among the unions most in favour of deploying the same-day strike, as a show of strength to try to force ministers to increase public sector pay offers.

If it goes ahead, it could see the ongoing or pending campaigns of industrial action by different groups of public sector workers being joined up to cause maximum disruption on one day.

However, other unions are concerned that such action could be portrayed by ministers as tantamount to a general strike and lessen public sympathy for public sector workers.

The invitation says: “As notified before Christmas at the coordinating industrial action meeting on 12 December, it was agreed that the TUC will reconvene all unions undertaking and considering industrial campaigns on Tuesday 10 January at 2pm in Congress House [the TUC’s London headquarters].

“We will use this meeting to discuss ongoing industrial action campaigns and to consider the scope for further coordination, including a day of action in pursuit of fair pay for public service workers.”

There is already coordinated action between some health unions. For example, on Wednesday, members of Unison and the GMB who work in NHS ambulance services in England and Wales will stage the second strike in their campaign against the health secretary, Steve Barclay’s, decision to limit the payrise for 2022-23 for most staff to £1,400.

Paul Nowak, the TUC’s general secretary, said on Tuesday that the proposed anti-strike legislation was “undemocratic, unworkable and almost certainly illegal” and was a “sack-key-workers bill”.

Labour has pledged to repeal the restrictions if they do become law and it is elected.

A round of talks on Monday between health, education and rail unions with the respective cabinet ministers about their ongoing pay dispute raised tentative hopes of a breakthrough in negotiations.