Call for new strike laws as union ballots civil servants

12 April 2012

Business chiefs today urged the Government to "get on with it" and introduce tough new strike laws as it was announced that more than 250,000 civil servants are to vote on industrial action.

Thousands of members of the Public and Commercial Services union are poised to walk out on June 30 unless ministers and union leaders can reach agreement over a new pension scheme. The union will hold a strike ballot next week.

General secretary Mark Serwotka urged members to "fight like never before", saying strikes could "turn the tide" against the Government.

But CBI chief Helen Alexander said that public sector militancy threatened to put off foreign investors. "The international competitiveness element here is at risk. Investors have choices and if they don't like what they see as an environment here in industrial relations or anything else, they will go elsewhere," she said.

The Coalition is understood to be considering toughening laws so strikes could take place only if at least 40 per cent of employees vote in favour but Downing Street says this is likely only if there is a surge in industrial action. A Department of Business spokesman said: "There are no current plans to change this body of law."

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