1. Business
August 1, 2017

Bank of England workers strike for the first time in over 50 years

Bank of England (BoE) workers are staging a three-day strike from today in a dispute over pay.

After talks at the conciliation service Acas failed, Unite members at the BoE working in the maintenance, hospitality and security departments decided to protest against a below-inflation pay offer of one percent.

The rate of consumer price inflation currently stands at 2.6 percent.

The protesters blame the BoE  governor, Mark Carney, for the break down of talks between the central bank and the Unite union.

“The governor of the Bank of England must take responsibility for the fact that his dedicated workforce is having to make their concerns heard from a picket line,” said Unite’s Peter Kavanagh.

“Unite members from the maintenance, parlours and security departments have been left with no choice but to take industrial action because they are facing another year of having to endure a pay cut imposed upon them,” he added.

Up to a third of staff will get no pay rise this year, according to the union.

The BoE said in a statement that business will continue as normal, despite the strike action.

The Union balloted approximately two percent of the workforce. The Bank has plans in place so that all essential business will continue to operate as normal during this period. The Bank has been in talks with Unite up to and including today and remains ready to continue those talks at any time.

The strike will coincide with the Bank’s so-called Super Thursday event, when the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) reveals its latest decision on interest rates and the Bank publishes its quarterly report on inflation.

Carney will then hold a press conference.

Wearing masks of BoE governor Carney, the protesters have gathered outside the BoE headquarters on Threadneedle Street in London.

The BoE employs around 4,000 people in total.