BT Group workers, including call centre workers in Enniskillen, have voted in favour of the first national call centre strike in British history.
On June 30, the Communication Workers Union (CWU) – the union for all BT Group employees – announced that Openreach engineers and call centre workers voted in favour of a strike.
The dispute relates to BT workers opposing company management’s imposition of a low flat-rate pay rise.
Earlier this year, BT offered and implemented a £1,500 per year pay increase for employees.
The CWU say that in the context of RPI inflation levels hitting 11.7 per cent last month, this is a dramatic real-terms pay cut.
If strike action goes ahead, it will be the first at BT Group since 1987. The potential strike action will have a serious effect on infrastructure, particularly on the roll-out of broadband, and may cause significant issues for those working from home.
The union said it is still open to negotiations, and invites the BT Group to submit a fresh pay offer.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here