Unions attack Labour over pay

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Delegates at the TUC Congress in Brighton will debate calls for co-ordinated industrial action over ministers' attempts to limit pay rises to 2% in the public sector.

The conference is expected to back a motion pressing for days of action, including a national demonstration, against the Government's pay policy.

The Public and Commercial Services Union has announced that 270,000 civil servants working in every government department are to be balloted on a three-month long programme of industrial action which will extend into the new year.

The PCS will try to co-ordinate any strikes with other unions representing public sector workers including teachers and council staff, which would cause huge problems for the Government later this year.

Union leaders are expected to criticise the Prime Minister for holding a Cabinet meeting in Birmingham while pay is being debated at the TUC Conference.

Mark Serwotka, general secretary of the PCS, said it would have been a "golden opportunity" for ministers to hear first-hand how workers were struggling to pay fuel and food bills if the Cabinet had met in Brighton.

He said the new strike ballot follows growing anger over the Government's policy of trying to limit pay rises in the public sector to 2% this year despite rising inflation.

Strikes have already been held across the public sector this year, affecting coast guards, immigration officers, driving test examiners and jobcentre staff. Every single government department in the UK will be affected if workers support industrial action.

Leaders of Unison warned the Government there is a "huge level of unhappiness" among workers over pay and other issues which could feed through to the next general election.