The Public and Commercial Services union is balloting 750 ICT staff working on contracts for five major government Departments and agencies for strike action over pay.
According to our sister site www.publictechnology.net, the conflict centres on supplier Fujitsu and its outsourcing work for HMRC, Home Office, Ministry of Defence, the Office of National Statistics and the DVLA. The staff perform a variety of roles, including support for HMRC IT systems, meaning the payment of tax credits could be hit by any industrial action; in the DVLA they maintain and develop the IT systems that produce driving licences.
If the ballot is successful, industrial action could be held in September and October and would, said the union, “affect” the public services supported by the contractor Fujitsu – particularly in HM Revenue and Customs and the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency.
The move could result in Fujitsu facing financial penalties for missing service agreements. If that happened, it would be in sharp contrast to the situation earlier this year. At that point, the union said it had then either met or exceeded performance targets on these contracts this year and “senior managers are enjoying bonuses in excess of £14,000 in some cases – more than some staff earn in a year”.
Despite this situation, the company is refusing to increase a pay offer that will mean rises of between just 1.5% and 2.5%, well below the rate of inflation. It also alleges that the firm “reneged” on a commitment given during talks last year to introduce a structured pay progression system.
PCS general secretary Mark Serwotka said: “While senior managers are pocketing bonuses in excess of what some of our members earn in a year, it’s not only wrong, it’s offensive for Fujitsu to claim it can’t afford to increase pay.
Just because these staff are off the government’s books, ministers are ultimately responsible for what happens in their department’s name and they can not simply wash their hands of issues like low pay among their contractors."
