Unions preparing for strike ballot over threat to 200 TTS jobs

Thursday 26 November 2015

Strike action by public sector unions could be just weeks away after Unite official Nick Corbel confirmed that he was preparing to ballot members on a walkout.

He says that managers have indicated that up to 200 jobs could be about to go at the TTS department, and that he sees that as the flashpoint that could turn the long-running tension into a full-blown confrontation.

Reacting to news that the cost-cutting report by savings consultant Kevin Keen had recommended outsourcing the entire TTS department, Mr Corbel said that his members were being bullied by the Council of Ministers.

And he confirmed that preparations for a strike ballot had begun.

“I have audited our membership statistics and will be passing them to shop stewards to ensure that we have up to date information to be able to trigger the ballot process,” he said.

“We want to be able to do it at a moment’s notice.

“It could well be that TTS will be the trigger point for any such action.”

Yesterday, the Council of Ministers met with an agenda item titled "Transport and Technical Services Transformation" listed, but no further details have been revealed.

Last week, it was revealed that the public sector workforce has been cut by 120 jobs already this year with another 45 due to go by January.

The States are aiming to cut £70 million from the States’ pay bill by 2019 as part of a package of measures to fill the looming £145 million deficit in public finances.

Ministers plan to hit that target by cutting jobs, by freezing public sector pay, and by reviewing salaries to make sure that they match the jobs that people are doing.

Mr Corbel says that his union will fight the cuts on behalf of its members.

He said: “We will fight any attempt to cut, outsource or privatize.

“They’re a bunch of bullies, that’s what we’re dealing with.

“They are leaving us very little scope to maneuver, we are being backed into a corner.

“[TTS Minister] Eddie Noel will make savage cuts at TTS if he is allowed to get away with it. The Chief Officer of TTS has already indicated there will be up to 200 jobs losses, and I know for a fact that he is focussing on gardeners and cleaners.”