Labor strikes "against the high price" paralyze life in Britain

Nearly half a million workers took part in the strike.

EPA

An estimated half a million workers have joined an industrial strike that has crippled life in Britain, with thousands of schools closed, train services paralyzed and airport delays expected, as preludes to Britain's biggest industrial strike in more than a decade appear as unions step up pressure on the government to demand improvements. Wages, amid the cost of living crisis.

The Trade Union Confederation (TUC) estimated that nearly half a million workers, including teachers, university employees, civil servants, border officials, and train and bus drivers, were on strike across the country.

There are plans for more strikes, including nursing and ambulance staff, in the coming days and weeks.

Britons suffered months of turmoil in their daily lives as a bitter row over wages and working conditions continued between trade unions and the government.

But yesterday's strikes represent an escalation of disruptive action in many key industries.

The last time the country witnessed mass strikes of this magnitude was in 2011, when more than a million public sector workers staged a one-day strike over a dispute over pension benefits.

Union bosses say that although some wage increases have been announced - such as the government's proposed 5% offer for teachers - scores of public sector workers have struggled financially because their wages have failed to keep pace with severe inflation, meaning they are effectively facing a pay cut.

The National Education Union said about 23,000 schools were affected yesterday, with 85% closed in whole or in part.

Members of the Union of Universities and Colleges have also announced a strike, leaving about 150 educational institutions across the country due to a dispute over pension allowances, wage discrepancies and working conditions.

Museum workers, London bus drivers, coast guards and border officials who run passport control kiosks at airports are also on strike.

Education Secretary Gillian Keegan said the government would not budge, and that caving in to demands for higher wages would only fuel inflation.

"What we can't do is give part of the workforce wage increases that would exacerbate inflation for everyone," Keegan told the BBC.

This does not make sense from an economic point of view.

So far, the economy has not been hit hard by the strikes, costing them in the eight months to January about 1.7 billion pounds ($2.09 billion), or about 0.1% of expected gross domestic product, according to estimates by the Center for Economics and Business Research.

The center estimated the expected losses as a result of the teachers' strike at about 20 million pounds per day.

But the strikes may have a political impact on Sunak's government.

Opinion polls indicate that citizens believe that the government has handled the strikes poorly.

The strikers are calling for wage increases that are higher than inflation rates to cover the costs of food and energy, which they say increases acute pressure on them as it is not enough to meet their needs.

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