Oct 6, 2022
BT staff step up strike action as Virgin Media O2 offers pay rise
The union representing frontline staff at BT has launched a fresh round of strike action just as rival Virgin Media O2 announced a 10 per cent pay rise for its lowest-paid staff. About 40,000 BT staff represented by the Communication Workers Union are set to strike on four days this month beginning on Thursday and for the first time since the industrial action started, 999 emergency call handlers are joining the walkouts. The union is disputing a £1,500 pay rise offered to 58,000 frontline workers, including engineers, call centre staff and retail workers, across BT Group in April, which equated to an average 4.8 per cent pay rise at a time when inflation is around 10 per cent. Including a 3 per cent pay rise earlier in the year, and bonus payments, the new offer equates to a more than 10 per cent pay rise for the company's lowest paid staff. Y Kerr, deputy general secretary of the CWU, responsible for telecoms, said that the Virgin Media O2 offer is "The kind of thing we'd be willing to look at" for BT staff.
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