UK Prison Workers Strike

Libcom.org is reporting that, Some 20,000 prison officers in England and Wales took illegal unofficial action on Wednesday 29 August against Gordon Brown’s public sector wage cuts and the disastrous overcrowding in prisons.

Their laws are similar to ours in that Prison officers were banned from striking by a court ruling in early 1993, which found prison officers had powers and authority similar to those of the police and subsequently could not strike. That was written into law by the Tories in the 1994 Criminal Justice Act. Just as we are deemed "essential employees."

Why did they strike?

Wednesday's strike came after a pay review body recommended a rise of 2.5 percent this year but the government decided that it should be staged, with an initial 1.5 percent rise followed by another 1 percent six months later.

Big deal you say, they were proposed a low raise and staggered at that. Well the main point applicable to all of us is this:

Brian Clarke, chair of Birmingham POA, told Socialist Worker, “Our pay awards are meant to be according to performance. There is a growth in prison population but not in prison staff, so our performance is increasing.

As we begin our negotiations we need to remind the County that like our UK counter parts there's been an increase in inmates but not a proportionate increase in staff so our performance is also increasing.

While I am not advocating a strike. Philosophically I agree with Brian Caton, general secretary of the POA... “I believe every officer has human rights, and they include the right to withdraw their labour,” he said.