Wednesday, July 9, 2014

Public Sector Pay Attacks Rob Workers of 8 Months Food


TUC reveals scale of lost earnings before July 10 mass strike


CON-DEM attacks on public-sector pay have robbed workers of enough cash to feed their families for eight months straight — from now until the general election.

Trade Union Congress (TUC) researchers said yesterday that public-sector workers had lost the equivalent of £2,245 a year through freezes and below-inflation rises since 2010.

Official figures put the cost of a typical family’s weekly shop at £60 — meaning that the lost wages would have kept kitchens stocked for 37 weeks.

The TUC’s shocking study comes on the eve of tomorrow’s enormous strike over years of real-terms pay cuts.

Workers across the country — from school crossing guards to NHS staff, teachers to refuse workers — will walk out to demand an end to the government’s assault.

Two million people belonging to unions including PCS, GMB, FBU, RMT, the National Union of Teachers, Unison and Unite are set to join picket lines.

“Wages are falling further behind the cost of living and in the last four years some civil servants have seen their income fall by 20 per cent,” said PCS general secretary Mark Serwotka.

“The meagre economic recovery is only benefiting the rich — we need a recovery for everyone.