OVER half a million public sector workers from eight unions were on strike yesterday, fighting against the Tory government’s attack on their pay, conditions and the services they provide.
The 75,000 BMA junior doctors, who began a 72-hour strike on Monday and finished it at 7am this morning, were joined by 150,000 PCS and Prospect civil servants, 250,000 NEU teachers, 20,000 RMT and Aslef Tube workers, 70,000 UCU lecturers, and thousands of BBC NUJ members.
There were two mass marches which converged on Trafalgar Square in central London.
There were 50,000 on the march from Park Lane, with the NEU teachers union at the front and the junior doctors coming up behind.
Some of the the teachers banners said: ‘SEND Help, We are the NEU, Wirral NEU, Yorkshire. Our students are worth it. School Cuts no Way make the greedy bankers pay. Fair pay and we’ll stay. No ifs no buts – no education cuts. We are the NEU Our Students are worth it.’
All along the route there were loud chants of ‘1,2,3,4 Can you hear the teachers roar? 5,6,7,8, we just want to educate. Save our Schools.’
At the rally in Trafalgar Square, NEU Joint General Secretary Dr Mary Bousted said: ‘We demand the government looks after our nation’s school children. They come in cold and hungry and they shouldn’t be.
‘Teachers work more unpaid overtime than any other section. All the support services are gone. It’s been done over years. Health. You deserve to be cherished and wellpaid. You are magnificent.’
Emma Runswick, Deputy President of the BMA Council, said: ‘More than 70,000 junior doctors are out on strike this week. Why? Because when they qualify doctors only get £14 an hour.’
There were over 3,000 PCS and Prospect members with banners and members from all over the country on march from Embankment.
The march stopped at Downing Street, where PCS General Secretary Mark Serwotka said: ‘We have had a great day. We have had mass rallies in Manchester, Leeds, Liverpool, Cardiff, all over the country.
‘Who has had 2% when inflation is 16% – milk, eggs, butter, the staples have all gone up. HMRC have joined the strike. 30% of HMRC are on minimum wage, same as DWP who rely on food banks and benefits. The talks are such a farce it makes ‘Yes Minister’ look like a serious documentary. We want money and we want it now.
‘The cost of living crisis is now, we’re not waiting till August. BBC journalists, junior doctors, lecturers, teachers, railway workers – eight unions on strike today.
‘Next time it will be 16 uninons. We can’t afford not to win because the cost of living crisis is now for the civil service.
‘We can’t rely on benefits and food banks. On Friday we will escalate action and announce five weeks of continuous strikes.’
Soon after the front of the Park Lane march reached Trafalgar Square the front of the Embankment march arrived, with huge cheers as the marchers greeted each other.
TUC General Secretary Paul Nowak told the joint rally: ‘Half a million are on strike today. I don’t have to tell you we have had a decade of real terms pay cuts.
‘In his Budget speech today Hunt said nothing about funding for public services. It’s a government that doesn’t deserve to be in office.’
