THE trade union movement faces a “pivotal moment” in its history, the leader of Civil Service union PCS told the annual conference of Northern region of the TUC on Saturday.

Fran Heathcote said that after suffering austerity, the cost-of-living crisis and now recession, it was no wonder that workers had been taking strike action which had prompted the government to enact its strike-breaking Minimum Service Levels legislation.

“It is nothing to do with protecting public services, but with attacking the right to strike,” the union general secretary said.