UNIONS have reacted angrily to plans to scrap national pay rates for public sector workers.
Chancellor George Osborne is expected to say civil servants, such as Jobcentre and DVLA staff, should have pay brought into line with private sector wages in their regions.
The Treasury says public sector pay in some parts of England and Wales is up to 18 per cent higher than the private sector, meaning that Osborne wants 18 per cent public sector wage cuts. The propaganda is that this cut will be achieved over years of wage freezing, but no doubt new starters will be taking the full 18 per cent cut immediately.
At the same time, this class war Chancellor is said to be about to cut corporation tax and cut the 50 per cent tax rate for the bosses and the bankers.
It is being said that the low pay plan will initially affect 160,000 civil servants working in Jobcentres, the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA), and border guards at ports and airports.
However, once indefinite pay freezing in the public sector gets a foot in the door, no public sector worker and his or her family will be safe from this vicious wage cutting, which will be used to keep both public and private sector wages on the floor.
This tactic is part of a strategy to destroy the trade unions, by delivering trade unionism a body blow from which it will never recover.
The reality is that local pay rates affecting up to six million public sector workers, who make up the majority of the trade union movement, are to begin from next year.
Treasury officials say it would ensure the UK has ‘a responsive, modern labour force’, of slave labourers.
Yesterday trade unions were responding to this major attack.
TUC general secretary Brendan Barber said: ‘Moving to regional pay will not just reduce the pay of millions of public servants, but hit regional economies outside London and the South East when people have less to spend.’
PCS general secretary Mark Serwotka said: ‘Driving down pay even further at the same time as cutting public sector salaries and pensions, and planning to cut the 50p tax rate, would not only be cruel it would be economically incompetent and counterproductive. . . It appears that next week’s budget is shaping up to include the exact opposite of what our communities need to help them get back on their feet.’
Dave Prentis, General Secretary of Unison, said: ‘In the NHS nurses, paramedics, therapists and midwives are among the workers suffering for a second year without any increase in pay, to compensate for rising costs. The dismantling of Agenda for Change would be the government’s final nail in the coffin of our NHS.
‘Local government workers already face a third year without a pay rise and cutting pay further will take many more families onto the breadline and onto benefits, with taxpayers picking up the bill.’
Len McCluskey, Unite general secretary, said: ‘This is yet another shocking assault on the living standards of millions of ordinary working people by their own government, and comes hard on the heels of a three year pay cut which will slash wages by around 20 per cent.’
So far so good. However, talk is not going to stop this Tory-LibDem offensive to pauperise the working class and neuter the trade unions.
The moment after this low pay policy is announced in next week’s Budget, the TUC general council must be called together in an emergency session to call an indefinite general strike to bring the coalition down and bring in a workers government and socialism.
Leaders who refuse to call this necessary action must be made to resign at once and be replaced by leaders who will. The time for action has arrived. The TUC must call a general strike now!