Civil servants have voted overwhelmingly in favour of strike action amid an escalating row over returning to the office.
Hundreds of workers at the Office for National Statistics (ONS) have backed an all-out strike in protest against being ordered back to the workplace two days a week.
The civil servants, who are members of the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union, have refused to go into the office since May. However, they escalated the dispute by refusing to work overtime or out of hours.
While no strike days have been set, the latest vote means the union can announce industrial action at any point over the next six months.
Fran Heathcote, PCS general secretary, said: “Up until now our members have been taking action short of a strike but today they’ve voted to escalate this, which could involve an all-out strike.
“Our industrial action has until now had no tangible impact on the ONS’s outputs – which was the point, because we said our members can work at home just as well, if not better, than being in the office – but that can change now we have authority to call a full strike any time in the next six months.
“If management wants to ensure the work at ONS remains unaffected, they must engage in meaningful talks with us to end this dispute.”
The threat of disruption to ONS services could have a significantly broader impact given the body’s role as the UK’s official statistical institute.
The ONS is responsible for producing monthly data on inflation, employment and GDP – all of which is closely watched by government officials and Bank of England rate-setters for signals of how well the economy is performing.
It also carries out a census of England and Wales every 10 years.
Staff at the ONS, who are based in the organisation’s Newport headquarters, as well as sites in London, Darlington in County Durham, Manchester, Edinburgh and Titchfield in Hampshire, have been told to spend at least 40pc of their time in the office.
This is below other government targets, which usually require civil servants to go into the office for at least 60pc of their contracted hours.
The PCS has previously argued that many workers are already meeting the 40pc target but that mandated attendance would reduce flexibility.
An ONS spokesman said: “We have robust plans in place and do not anticipate any disruption to key ONS publications.
“Nevertheless, we still believe firmly that a reasonable level of office attendance – in line with the wider civil service – is in the best interests of the ONS and of all our colleagues. Face-to-face interaction supports personal collaboration, learning and innovation.”
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