Hundreds of thousands of employees face a “summer of discontent” as Boris Johnson yesterday went to war with workers asking for pay rises.
Staff across sectors from transport to telecoms, hospitals to leisure centres, and bin collectors, bus drivers and postal workers have either gone on strike or could stage walkouts.
While some are asking for pay rises to keep pace with soaring living costs, others just want a decent wage increase. It came as the PM triggered a backlash by warning of a 1970s-style “wage price spiral”.
Mr Johnson, giving a speech in Blackpool, claimed big pay rises could force the Bank of England to up interest rates.
Millions of households have been plunged into poverty by a record wave of energy price hikes, with nurses having to use foodbanks.
The highest profile dispute is a looming national strike by rail workers this month which, the RMT union said, will grind the network to a halt. Train drivers are set to join in after the Aslef union yesterday announced strikes at three companies in rows over pay.
More than 40,000 BT workers are to be balloted next week for what would be the first national strike at the former state-owned telecoms monopoly in 35 years.
The Communication Workers Union is preparing to launch a ballot of 115,000 postal workers at Royal Mail. Budweiser workers have announced summer strikes over pay. Thousands of British Airways workers could strike, along with baggage handlers at Stansted.
Staff at the Financial Conduct Authority began a second wave of strike action yesterday in London and Edinburgh.
Refuse collectors in Croydon, South London; Wealden, East Sussex; and Chesterfield, Derbyshire are on strike or being balloted.
The GMB union says it has been involved in about 50 disputes since late last year. Gary Smith, general secretary, said: “The country faces a summer of discontent – it’s a perfect storm of the cost of living, stagnant wages and labour shortages.”
Inflation has hit a 40-year high of 9% and is predicted to top 10% by autumn. The Office for National Statistics shows pay rose by 4.2% on average in the first three months this year, a real terms wage cut for millions.
Unite secured a 13% pay rise for Babcock staff at Plymouth Devonport dockyard, and 15% for hold baggage handlers at Glasgow airport.
Tony Wilson, director of the Institute for Employment Studies, said: “We’ve the tightest labour market in our lifetimes. There’s never been a better time to ask for a rise.”
But Mr Johnson warned: “When a wage price spiral begins, there is only one cure... slam the brakes on rising prices with higher interest rates.”
But TUC deputy general secretary Paul Nowak said energy prices were driving inflation. He said: “Workers are suffering the longest wage squeeze in more than 200 years.”
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Wages are chasing prices, not putting them up.”
