Public and Commercial Services (PCS) members working in the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) have voted overwhelmingly to take industrial action.
The union balloted members after it raised concerns over planned office closures, rigid office attendance policies and changes to recruitment practices. The results of the first ballot, which balloted members based in the six offices at risk of closure, closed on 26th March and showed civil servants working in Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner’s department voted by 78.49% for strike action on a 66% turnout.
A second ballot for all other MHCLG offices closes on April 9.
The PCS union says members are angry over plans to close their offices in Birmingham, Exeter, Newcastle, Sheffield, Truro, and Warrington; adding the closures would
“undermine the department’s own commitment to levelling up opportunity and prosperity and overcoming deep-seated geographical inequalities that have held us back for too long”
Alongside the office closures, the ballot was also aimed at guidance published by the Cabinet Office in October 2024 reiterating the civil services’ desire to see staff ‘spend at least 60% of their time at a Government building or on official business.’ The position has seen other government agencies, including HM Land Registry, affected by similar action despite broad agreement by the Civil Service Heads of Department ‘60% minimum office attendance for most staff continues to be the best balance of working for the Civil Service.’
The ballot was announced in February and would ask more than 1,100 PCS union members in MHCLG offices whether they would take industrial action. Responding to the results PCS general secretary Fran Heathcote said:
“These office closures not only threaten the livelihoods of our members but also remove the presence of the government department responsible for local communities from some of the most deprived areas in the country. As the main face of the Employment Rights Bill, the Deputy Prime Minister must match her words with action and listen to her own workers.
“Members are deeply concerned about how these closures may affect their ability to rebuild local government, promote regional development and deliver on Labour’s mission to build 1.5 million new homes. They stand ready to strike to defend their offices, their communities and their employment rights.”
