Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) on a picket line outside Liverpool Lime Street station, in a long-running dispute over pay, jobs and conditions, July 29, 2023
NEARLY four million working days have been lost to industrial action in the past year — more than at any point since the 1980s — new research has revealed.
Many of the strikes, which have wiped out about 3.9 million working days, have been fuelled by take-home pay falls of more than 9 per cent in the highly unionised public sector, according to the Resolution Foundation.
Industries including health, education, the postal services and railways have been responsible for 96 per cent of all days lost to strike action since 2021, the independent think tank added.
By making it simpler to support workers in struggle, Strike Map’s new Solidarity Fund aims to strengthen strikes when they need it most, write ROBERT POOLE and HENRY FOWLER
The biggest strike in global history is a template for our future. The silence tells you all you need to know, writes CLAUDIA WEBBE
Royal Mail’s job quality has plummeted, with gruelling hours, two-tier pay, intense surveillance, and poor work-life balance for postal workers — but our union is fighting back, writes CWU branch secretary JOHN CARSON