The Public and Commercial Services union (PCS) has announced that its members working as legal advisers and court associates will go on strike for nine days beginning on Saturday.
The workers, who postponed their planned strike last month due to the death of Queen Elizabeth II, are embroiled in a dispute over the use of the so-called Common Platform system.
His Majesty’s Courts and Tribunal Service (HMCTS), their employer, has stated that the scheme is critical to modernising the court system.
However, the PCS claims that “teething problems” warned of when the scheme was implemented two years ago have persisted, forcing employees to work longer hours and negatively impacting the justice system.
The union previously stated that 180 of its members were involved in the dispute, which will result in industrial action from October 22-30.
Originally, 55 courts were to be affected, but after the strike was postponed due to the Queen’s death, staff in 13 more courts voted to participate as well.
Picket lines will be set up outside Luton Magistrates’ Court, Manchester Magistrates’ Court, and Peterborough Magistrates’ Court on Monday at 8.30 a.m., according to the PCS.
Other courts include those in Wimbledon, Lavender Hill, Willesden, and Uxbridge in London, as well as those in Sussex, Cardiff, Somerset, the Midlands, and Hampshire.
“Our members in courts feel a huge amount of resentment and resolve because their voices are being ignored by managers,” said the union’s general secretary, Mark Serwotka.
We asked managers to halt the scheme’s implementation, but they refused. They haven’t even paused to allow for negotiations. They talk about feedback a lot, but they don’t listen. They just keep going, regardless of the consequences.” This is not a novel plan. We were told two years ago that there would be teething problems, but that once it was embedded, things would improve. It hasn’t happened. Our members are working longer hours, which has a negative impact on their family lives and, more importantly, their ability to provide justice.”
When the union’s ballot results were first announced, an HMCTS spokesperson stated, “This is a disappointing outcome as we have been working with staff and unions on the rollout of the Common Platform since September 2020, and it has already dealt with over 158,000 criminal cases.”
According to the PCS, the courts affected by strike action are: Aberystwyth Justice Centre; Aldershot Justice Centre, Barrow-In-Furness Magistrates’ Court; Basingstoke Magistrates’ Court; Beverley Magistrates’ Court and Family Court; Bolton Magistrates’ Court; Brighton Magistrates’ Court, Bristol Magistrates’ Court and Tribunals Hearing Centre; Caernarfon Justice Centre; Cambridge Magistrates’ Court; Cardiff Magistrates’ Court; Carlisle Magistrates’ Court; Crawley Magistrates’ Court; Crewe (South Cheshire) Magistrates’ Court; Derby Magistrates’ Court; Durham County Court and Family Court; Ealing Magistrates’ Court, Gateshead Law Courts; Grimsby Magistrates’ Court and Family Court; Guildford Magistrates’ Court and Family Court; Hastings Magistrates’ Court; Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court; Hereford Justice Centre; High Wycombe Magistrates’ Court and Family Court; Kidderminster Magistrates’ Court; Lavender Hill Magistrates’ Court; Lincoln Magistrates’ Court; Liverpool and Knowsley Magistrates’ Court; Liverpool Civil and Family Court; Llanelli Magistrates’ Court; Luton and South Bedfordshire Magistrates’ Court; Manchester Magistrates’ Court; Mansfield Magistrates’ and County Court; Merthyr Tydfil Combined Court Centre; Mid and South East Northumberland Law Courts; Milton Keynes Magistrates’ Court and Family Court; Mold Justice Centre; Newcastle Upon Tyne Crown Court and Magistrates’ Court; Newport (South Wales) Magistrates’ Court; Newton Aycliffe Magistrates’ Court; North Somerset Magistrates’ Court; North Staffordshire Justice Centre; North Tyneside Magistrates’ Court; Nottingham Magistrates Court; Oxford Magistrates’ Court; Peterborough Magistrates’ Court; Portsmouth Magistrates’ Court; Reading Magistrates’ Court and Family Court; Redditch Magistrates’ Court; Sefton Magistrates’ Court; South Tyneside Magistrates’ Court; St Albans Magistrates’ Court; Staines Magistrates’ Court and Family Court; Stockport Magistrates’ Court; Sunderland County, Family, Magistrates’ and Tribunals Hearings; Swindon Magistrates’ Court; Tameside Magistrates’ Court; Teesside Magistrates’ Court; Telford Magistrates’ Court; Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court; Warrington Magistrates’ Court; West Hampshire Magistrates’ Court; Wigan and Leigh Magistrates’ Court; Willesden Magistrates’ Court; Wimbledon Magistrates’ Court; Worcester Justice Centre; Worthing Magistrates’ Court; and Yeovil County, Family and Magistrates’ Court.
https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMivQFodHRwczovL3VrbmlwLmNvLnVrL0JyZWFraW5nL05ld3MvYnJlYWtpbmcvc2l4dHktZWlnaHQtY291cnRzLWFjcm9zcy1lbmdsYW5kLWFuZC13YWxlcy13aWxsLWJlLWFmZmVjdGVkLWJ5LXN0YWZmLWxhdW5jaGluZy1hLXN0cmlrZS1pbi1hLWRpc3B1dGUtb3Zlci1hLWNvbnRyb3ZlcnNpYWwtY2FzZS1tYW5hZ2VtZW50LXN5c3RlbS_SAQA?oc=5
