Border Force staff are set to bring more chaos to Britain’s busiest airports today as they begin their latest streak of strikes.
Some 1,000 PCS Union members have stopped working at Heathrow, Birmingham, Cardiff, Gatwick, Glasgow and Manchester airports in a bitter dispute over pay and pensions.
Union bosses warned that the strikes could continue for months, until May, when King Charles is crowned.
Today’s action will deal a further blow to tourists returning to the UK after the Christmas holidays, with many now expected to face chaos in major travel hubs.
Passengers traveling to some of the UK’s biggest airports face another day of chaos as Border Force staff go on strike. Image is a stock image
Some 1,200 flights are expected to land today at the six airports affected by the strikes.
Last week, the military moved in to occupy border checkpoints at airports, and were praised for their speed and efficiency, with British astronaut Tim Peake among those who defended the troops’ work.
Today’s strike is the latest in a spate of industrial actions across Britain that will cause chaos for the next week.
The rail service disruption will continue today and Thursday, with the departure of TSSA union members at Great Western Railway and West Midlands Trains.
Follow the strike on Boxing Day. TSSA union members on Great Western Railway will be out on foot from noon to 11:59am on Thursday, and on West Midlands Trains for 24 hours from noon to the same time on Thursday.
West Midlands Trains said none of its services would be running from Wednesday morning as a result of the TSSA strike.
Meanwhile, driving examiners have launched their own five-day strike as part of intensifying industrial action by civil servants demanding better pay.
The protest involves PCS members at 71 test centers in the East of England and the Midlands who are employed by the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) as driving examiners and local driving test administrators.
PCS General Secretary Mark Serwotka said of the examiners’ strike: “Our members have been offered a pay increase of just two per cent at a time when the cost of living crisis is over 10 per cent. hundred”.
PCS union members on the picket line near Heathrow airport in the pre-Christmas strikes
Gun show: This soldier flexes for the camera as military personnel were called to Heathrow Airport on Friday December 23rd to cover striking workers.
The Home Office brought in personnel from the British Army, Royal Air Force and Royal Navy to cover last week’s strikes.
“We know our action will cause widespread disruption and inconvenience to people in the East of England and the Midlands (hundreds of driving tests have already been canceled in other parts of the country), but the government is to blame.
“These strikes could be called off tomorrow if Rishi Sunak and Jeremy Hunt put some money on the table.”
Unions are looking for ways to organize more strikes by dividing ballots by job titles instead of casting a single vote, according to reports.
It comes after a day of travel chaos despite a rail strike by the Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers Union (RMT) ending, with crowds of people waiting at London’s main train stations and many journeys delayed. due to the last installment of engineering works.
Train passengers have already been told to avoid travel for two weeks as the industry is hit by the chaos of the strike.
Network Rail issued the warning amid a series of longstanding disputes over wages and working conditions.
Commuters returning to work in the New Year will face days of chaos, with rail strikes throughout the first week of January.
Large stretches of the country’s rail network are forecast to come to a standstill, and RMT members will walk on wages and working conditions on Tuesday and Wednesday, January 4.
They will go back on strike on January 6 and 7. And on Thursday, January 5, train drivers from the Aslef union will stage their own strike.
The combined protests mean only one in five trains will run during the strikes, Rail Delivery Group (RDG) has warned, while “half the network will shut down”.
‘It is likely that there will be even fewer services on January 5 due to a strike by drivers belonging to [the union] Aslef’, added the RDG.
Armed Forces at Heathrow Airport Terminal 2 on the first day of the Border Force strike
The Armed Forces intervened to cover strikes at Heathrow Airport on Friday
However, new reports suggest that industry bosses and rail unions are “almost there” in their efforts to reach a wage deal, raising hopes that the latest strikes can be averted.
Sources told the Daily Mail that RMT union boss Mick Lynch has softened his stance and been “the most negotiating” he has been encountered in recent meetings.
Negotiators are understood to be looking to use language “creatively,” particularly around industry reform, so both sides can better sell a deal.
Meanwhile, the i newspaper reported that the TSSA is prepared to allow different sections of its members to vote at different times to carry out multiple strikes per week.
a spokesman told the newspaper: ‘Instead of voting everyone on one ballot, our intention is to split the ballot so that we can vote polling staff separately from controllers, for example, which would give us more flexibility as to when we can call people to strike.’
A spokesperson for the Department for Transport said: “After two years of virtual Christmas, the British public deserve better than to see their festive celebrations affected by strikes.
‘The Transport Secretary and the Railway Minister have worked hard to facilitate a fair and reasonable offer, which two unions have accepted, and it is incredibly disappointing that some continue to strike.
“We urge you to step back, reconsider and come back to the table, so we can start 2023 by ending this damaging dispute.”