Public and Commercial Services union members to vote on stike action over job cuts and pay

Britain’s largest civil service union has warned it will ballot for strike action early next year in disputes over job losses, pay deals and privatisation.

The Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union said it will ballot more than 280,000 members in about 200 government departments across the UK.

The first compulsory redundancies have recently been announced in the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and Department for Trade and Industry (DTI).

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The PCS fears that more compulsory redundancies in greater numbers will occur elsewhere in the Civil Service.

Mark Serwotka, PCS general secretary, said: “The decision to ballot for industrial action to secure assurances on job security and services, in addition to pay and privatisation, highlights the growing frustration of civil and public servants.”