Environment Agency staff have voted overwhelmingly to strike over pay for the first time in the organisation’s 26-year history, says UNISON today (Tuesday).
In the strike vote, 2,800 Agency staff were balloted by the union across England, including river inspectors, flood forecasting officers, coastal risk management officers and sewage plant attendants.
Of those who took part, 73% voted to strike and 92% for action short of a strike.
Earlier in the year staff, who also work on the Thames Barrier, maintain coastal defences, and manage the risk of flooding from rivers, reservoirs and the sea, rejected what they see as an insulting 2% pay offer (plus a £345 one-off payment), according to their union UNISON.
Low wages over many years have forced large numbers of staff to quit the UK’s key environmental regulator. This has left the Agency struggling to fill vacancies, putting the remaining workforce under intolerable pressure, says UNISON.
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