The following has been supplied by PCS HQ:
Our members are facing the tightest living standards squeeze for nearly a century so we are asking them to take action over pay.
We are holding a consultative ballot until 30 June asking members to back our 'We all need a pay rise campaign,' which calls for a concerted campaign of joint action with other public sector unions, starting with a 1-day strike on 10 July. Action is aimed at breaking the pay freeze, and winning a fair settlement on pay, jobs, pensions, outsourcing, and terms and conditions such as performance management.
Across the UK pay cuts have damaged the economy and caused real hardship for millions of people.
If pay had kept pace with inflation, average civil service pay would be £2,300 higher than it is now. But the government has announced that the pay cap will continue in 2014 and 2015 and possibly beyond.
We have submitted a pay claim to the Cabinet Office, which seeks a:
£1,200 or 5% pay increase.
Mass walkout
About 1.5 million local government employees could walk out of work for 24 hours on 10 July, supported by up to 500,000 civil servants and teachers.
Unite began balloting its local government members today while Unison is also currently balloting its members. The GMB has notified the Local Government Association (LGA) that it is to hold a similar ballot.
The unions demanded that the LGA pay all workers an extra £1 an hour, saying typical local government workers have seen their pay reduced by 20% in real terms since the coalition came to power in 2010.
The national executive of the National Union of Teachers decided in May against taking action during the week of 23 June to allow time to see if progress is possible in the talks with government. If there is no progress they will be taking action on 10 July.
Back our campaign
We have sought central talks on our claim. We must force the government to end the pay cap, to succeed. We have an existing industrial action mandate but our annual delegate conference in Brighton last month agreed to ask our members to vote 'yes' in the consultative ballot on our national campaign.
The campaign includes a co-ordinated 1-day strike on 10 July with other public sector workers and setting up a fighting fund to support targeted action.
How to vote
Members are able to cast their ballot in 1 of 3 different ways:
- Post - Use the envelope in your ballot pack
- Online - www.votebyinternet.com/pcs2014
- Phone - 0800 197 4625 (free)
To cast a vote electronically members need a security code, which is on the reverse of the ballot paper. It comes in 2 parts, and both parts are needed.
Members do not need their membership number or NI number to cast their vote, just the security code. However they will need either or of these to request a replacement paper.
