The face-off between the unions and the British government promises to expand into what is being called already “a summer of discontent” as strikes promise to spread from railway workers to the healthcare workers of the National Health System (NHS) and the teachers union. The unions are making clear that in the face of escalating prices and near two-digit inflation, pay offers of 3, 4 or 5% are “insulting,” while unions are demanding increases that keep up with inflation. Some health unions are demanding 14%.
On top of this there is a labor shortage in almost all critical areas of the economy, which is because workers were laid off during the pandemic lockdown and have not returned, while foreign workers from European Union countries have left, now that Britain is no longer in the EU. Moreover, in manufacturing there has been a chronic shortage of skilled labor. While the government is challenging public sector workers, the private sector, for these reasons, is not looking for a fight with their employees.
