Massive UK strike hits nation hard
LONDON: IT was the day that Britain turned back the clocks. Back to the dark days of 2020, when schools were closed, but also to bygone eras when bitter industrial disputes brought the country to a grinding halt.
The strikes on Wednesday (local time), the worst in more than a decade, raised fears that the country is facing a general strike. On what was branded “Walkout Wednesday”, hundreds of thousands of teachers, university lecturers, train drivers, bus drivers, Border Force officers, driving instructors and civil servants downed tools and manned picket lines.
The rail network was almost shut down as thousands of train drivers walked out. The vast majority of lines were closed or operated only a skeleton service as members of ASLEF held their sixth 24hour walkout since July in a dispute over pay. They have rejected an offer from the Rail Delivery Group, which represents train operators.
Officers manning the UK Borders also walked out at all ports and airports, but disruption was minimal. No flights were cancelled at Heathrow, the UK’s biggest airport, and officials said that immigration halls were moving freely, with e-gates operational.
More than 600 members of the armed forces were drafted in to man booths, along with scores of civil servants. Critics accused soldiers of waving through arrivals without proper checks. The Guardian reported that some National Crime Agency staff who were manning passport control in Calais received just two days’ official training before being put to work.
More than 100,000 members of the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union in more than 120 government departments also downed tools, describing their 2 per cent pay rise last year as a “slap in the face”.
Hundreds of workers marched on Whitehall and manned pickets outside government buildings in cities across the country.
Jake Berry, the Conservative MP and former cabinet minister, ridiculed striking civil servants, saying the number of staff on a picket line was the most he had seen in Westminster “since the start of the pandemic”.
More than 70,000 lecturers at 150 universities also joined the action, with students at some institutions joining their teachers on picket lines. Jo Grady, the University and College Union general secretary, said: “University staff have turned out in massive numbers on picket lines. Their anger over falling pay, insecure employment and pension cuts is impossible to ignore.”
She added: “We have been overwhelmed by the support of thousands of students who have joined us on picket lines across the country.
“They recognise that vicechancellors are wrecking the sector and are determined to stand with us and fix it.”
On the roads, congestion fell as workers stayed at home, avoiding rail commutes and looking after children whose schools were shut.
Saffron Cordery, the interim chief executive at NHS Providers, said the health service was becoming increasingly adept at managing disruption caused by industrial action. She added: “School closures will have affected NHS staff and patients.
“Trust leaders worked hard to support staff and minimise the disruption to patient services this week, including amending staff rotas and using agency workers.”