-
Britain braces for winter of strike action as nurses walk out

British nurses will go on strike this week, hitting already stretched hospitals and cranking up pressure on Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to quell the biggest wave of industrial action to hit the country in decades.
The walkout comes as strikes cripple the rail network and postal service, airports brace for disruption and junior doctors, midwives and teachers prepare to ballot, threatening to further jam up an economy that is likely already in recession.
Unions are seeking double-digit pay rises to keep pace with inflation that hit 11.1% in October, the highest in 41 years.
But the government has so far refused to budge on pay and is instead looking to tighten laws to stop some strikes, meaning there is no end in sight for what has been dubbed a new "winter of discontent" in reference to the industrial battles that gripped Britain in 1978-79.
Strikes are due on each day this month. Union estimates forecast more than 1 million working days will be lost in December, making it the worst month for disruption since July 1989.

NEW ERA
Susan Milner, a professor of European politics and society at the University of Bath, said the current strikes were "very different" to previous bouts, pointing to the wide array of sectors affected and the depth of the cost of living crisis.
"There's the potential for them to stretch out and (for striking workers to) dig themselves in and then that could really be something that we haven't seen for quite a long time," she said.
Nurses in Britain prepare for unprecedented strike over pay
Walk-outs in rail by RMT members, which started in June, are the union's biggest action for over 30 years, while for nurses, it is the first ever national strike action in the Royal College of Nursing's (RCN) 106-year-old history.
Nurses will walk out on Thursday and the following Tuesday.
Unions say the pay rise offers on the table, many for around 4%, are not enough given that many workers have already gone without any real-term wage growth over the last decade. In many cases, the action is also about working conditions.
"(For nurses) the job is getting harder and harder all of the time for a salary that is worth less and less," Patricia Marquis, director of the RCN in England, said.
The government will hope that the forecast for inflation to start to fall from the middle of 2023 will help.
Sunak, only six weeks into the job, has said the government cannot afford pay rises for public sector workers which cover inflation and has called union leaders unreasonable.
U.S nurses face surge in workplace violence amid pandemic
But as strikes lead to non-urgent surgeries being cancelled and longer ambulance waiting times, public anger at the state of the country could force the government to give ground.
Sunak wants to extend laws to maintain some services in transport and could ban strikes in some other sectors. The army will be drafted in to drive ambulances and man airport passport desks during strikes.
MORE PROMINENT UNIONS
The walk-outs end decades of relatively stable industrial relations in Britain, compared to European neighbours such as France and Spain.
However days lost will be far fewer than in the 1970s and 1980s, when almost half of all workers were unionised. Around a quarter are members today.
UK PM Sunak has weak hand on strikes and should settle, economists say
The 1 million working days expected to be lost to strikes this December compares to the 12 million lost in September 1979, a period in British history known as the "winter of discontent", taken from the opening line of Shakespeare's Richard III.
Still, Berenberg senior economist Kallum Pickering believes unions have a stronger hand in an economy that needs more workers.
"I think the world that we're in is one where we get more prominent union activity," Pickering said. "Workers will have more wage bargaining power in a world of persistent labour shortages."
Source: anews
You May Also Like
Popular Posts
Caricature
BENEFIT Sponsors BuildHer...
- April 23, 2025
BENEFIT, the Kingdom’s innovator and leading company in Fintech and electronic financial transactions service, has sponsored the BuildHer CityHack 2025 Hackathon, a two-day event spearheaded by the College of Engineering and Technology at the Royal University for Women (RUW).
Aimed at secondary school students, the event brought together a distinguished group of academic professionals and technology experts to mentor and inspire young participants.
More than 100 high school students from across the Kingdom of Bahrain took part in the hackathon, which featured an intensive programme of training workshops and hands-on sessions. These activities were tailored to enhance participants’ critical thinking, collaborative problem-solving, and team-building capabilities, while also encouraging the development of practical and sustainable solutions to contemporary challenges using modern technological tools.
BENEFIT’s Chief Executive Mr. Abdulwahed AlJanahi, commented: “Our support for this educational hackathon reflects our long-term strategic vision to nurture the talents of emerging national youth and empower the next generation of accomplished female leaders in technology. By fostering creativity and innovation, we aim to contribute meaningfully to Bahrain’s comprehensive development goals and align with the aspirations outlined in the Kingdom’s Vision 2030—an ambition in which BENEFIT plays a central role.”
Professor Riyadh Yousif Hamzah, President of the Royal University for Women, commented: “This initiative reflects our commitment to advancing women in STEM fields. We're cultivating a generation of creative, solution-driven female leaders who will drive national development. Our partnership with BENEFIT exemplifies the powerful synergy between academia and private sector in supporting educational innovation.”
Hanan Abdulla Hasan, Senior Manager, PR & Communication at BENEFIT, said: “We are honoured to collaborate with RUW in supporting this remarkable technology-focused event. It highlights our commitment to social responsibility, and our ongoing efforts to enhance the digital and innovation capabilities of young Bahraini women and foster their ability to harness technological tools in the service of a smarter, more sustainable future.”
For his part, Dr. Humam ElAgha, Acting Dean of the College of Engineering and Technology at the University, said: “BuildHer CityHack 2025 embodies our hands-on approach to education. By tackling real-world problems through creative thinking and sustainable solutions, we're preparing women to thrive in the knowledge economy – a cornerstone of the University's vision.”
opinion
Report
ads
Newsletter
Subscribe to our mailing list to get the new updates!