CONTINUING a combination of targeted and all-member strike action will “help to build further pressure on Tory ministers and employers to accede to our reasonable demands,” striking civil servants said today.

Delegates gathered in Brighton for the opening day of the Public & Commercial Services (PCS) union’s annual conference backed a motion which endorsed national executive calls for the “flexible” approach to remain in place.

The strategy, which has seen a small number of members downing tools across more than 100 employers alongside national strike days – such as on February 1 when 100,000 civil servants walked out – helps to protect the lowest-paid who lose a day’s wages when they strike, PCS president Fran Heathcote has argued.

The motion also urged a “targeted political lobbying campaign of Tory ministers” and the exploration of “co-ordinated action with other unions, particularly Civil Service unions,” such as Unison, Prospect and the FDA.

Speaking at the Brighton Centre, Department for Work & Pensions employee Marie McDonald said: “Our members are telling reps daily that this strategy is the best for us in a cost-of-living crisis.

“They can afford to contribute to the benefit of us all, even if they are not called upon [to strike often],” the Sunderland delegate added. 

Other motions calling for three days of national strike action every month and widespread action short of a strike such as overtime bans were rejected.

PCS members, who first voted for a national campaign in November, could be set to strike until the autumn after overwhelmingly backing a renewal of their six-month strike mandate earlier this month.