IN announcing their plans to cut Civil Service jobs by 91,000 over the next three years in the media, with no consultation or even informing their own departmental heads, this government demonstrated its utter contempt and disregard for a group of workers who made sure the country continued to function during the recent pandemic.

Public services are in a dire state after decades of cuts and privatisation. Public and Commercial Services union (PCS) members are working hard to keep services running in the face of increased demands arising from the pandemic and Brexit.

There is one particular thing that separates Civil Service workers from the government — we actually care about the services we deliver. Despite 40 years of job cuts and attacks on our pay, terms and conditions, including interminable wage freezes, theft of pension rights and more, we are still committed to delivering the best level of services possible to those who need them.

But the situation is becoming untenable. Rather than more job cuts, we need investment, adequate staffing levels, fairly paid and well-trained workers, to deliver the first class services our communities need and deserve.

The politicians and the media tell us that austerity is over — tell that to the unemployed, disabled and the so-called “working poor,” including thousands of our members forced to claim the same benefits we administer and who are forced to access foodbanks in the same communities in which they work and live.

As sure as night follows day, the cost-of-living crisis will provoke a sharp increase in demand for public services. The Tories are not stupid: they know this but, as we move deeper into an extended period of crisis and instability, their top priority is protecting the profits of the few, rather than meeting the needs of the many.

There is real anger amongst our members. Having stepped up to deliver during the pandemic, they are once again being vilified by wealthy politicians in the press and in Parliament and subjected to the same old anachronistic stereotypes.

Their latest propaganda offensive centres on the old lie that cuts can be paid for by “efficiencies,” the familiar mantra of opportunist politicians whose real agenda is to deprive public services of resources, demoralise the staff and then claim only the private sector can really deliver. It is a con game played by profiteering spivs.   

The job cuts announcement is also a cynical attempt by a government in crisis to distract attention away from its many failures, its sleaze and its bankrupt policies that are creating and exacerbating the economic crisis, that they seek to blame on anyone but those who caused it — themselves.

PCS rejects politicians of any political colour playing games with the lives of our members, or of the people we serve. We have long memories: we remember when New Labour’s Gordon Brown stood up in Parliament 20 years ago and announced 100,000 Civil Service job cuts to the cheers of his backbenchers. We fought that assault and we will fight this one too.

Our annual delegate conference that meets this week will debate a campaigning programme of initiatives, including co-ordination with other unions and industrial action when necessary. We will work with our parliamentary group, and with our comrades in organisations like Disabled People Against Cuts and the People’s Assembly, to build opposition to these cuts — and more widely to oppose this government’s attacks on our class.

Most of all, we need unity in our movement. These cuts, like those in the National Health Service and local government, come from the same source, the Tories. We must oppose their co-ordinated and deliberate strategy to cut and privatise our public services on which the working class depend, for a civilised existence in a society run for profit.

PCS’s socialist leadership has argued at the TUC over the past 20 years that our movement must build co-ordinated campaigns across the public sector, including joint industrial action, to defeat these attacks.

We will continue to argue that is our only real alternative, so let us oppose these attacks and all attacks on the public sector and build a united response from the trade union movement. Let’s start by building the largest possible turn-out for the TUC demonstration in London on June 18 — see you there.  

Fran Heathcote is president of PCS. Twitter — @FranHeathcote.