THE TORY government has revealed that it is set to begin training hundreds of British Army personnel as strike-breakers this month, to be mobilised initially against PCS trade union members employed by the Border Force.
Plans signed off by Home Secretary Suella Braverman last Thursday will see up to 500 Army personnel getting up to a week of training ahead of being mobilised as strike-breakers against PCS picket lines at, amongst other locations, Dover Ferry Port and Heathrow Airport.
PCS members in 126 government departments, including Border Force, have overwhelmingly voted in favour of strike action in defence of pay, jobs and pensions.
The union has said that it will announce a ‘programme of sustained industrial action’ unless ‘substantial proposals’ from the government are received by this Friday.
PCS general secretary Mark Serwotka condemned the Tory strike-breaking plans, saying: ‘This is pure desperation by Suella Braverman.
‘Time and again, the military has been clear it has its own job to do and doesn’t want to spend time covering for the government’s failures.
‘The government’s attempts to recruit a strike-breaking workforce from within the civil service has also clearly failed, which is no surprise when it continues to treat its workforce with contempt, offering them only a 2% pay rise.
‘Instead of scrambling around for increasingly desperate solutions, the government should sit down with us at the negotiating table and agree a fair pay rise for workers who helped carry this country through the pandemic.’
He added: ‘The government must look at the huge vote for strike action across swathes of the Civil Service and realise it can no longer treat its workers with contempt.
‘We are calling on the government to respond positively to our members’ demands.
‘They have to give our members a 10% pay rise, job security, pensions justice and protected redundancy terms.’
The PCS said last week that it is set to announce strike action which will reach ‘into every corner of public life’, with tens of thousands of workers striking, including in Jobcentres, passport officers and the Border Force.
A Home Office spokesman said: ‘We are disappointed that the union has voted in favour of industrial action. Our priority will always be to keep our citizens safe and borders secure, and we will not compromise on this.
‘As the public would expect, we have plans in place to minimise potential disruption during possible strike action, while still carrying out essential checks.’
A Ministry of Defence spokesman said: ‘We have received a request from the Home Office and are considering it in line with military aid to the civil authorities (Maca) principles. No decisions have been made yet.’
