HUNDREDS of Worcester civil servants have gone on strike today over government plans to axe more than 100,000 jobs across the country.
Around 350 workers at Department for Food, Environment and Rural Affairs (Defra) and Inland Revenue offices, in Whittington Road, are planning to picket outside the buildings.
The one-day strike has been called by Britain's largest civil service union - the Public and Commercial Services Union.
It comes as civil servants face potential jobs cuts, changes to their working terms and conditions and the possibility of having to work an extra five years to receive a pension.
"The message of our campaign is that the Government can't arbitrarily cut staff without it having a negative impact on local public services," said Steve Martin, PCS branch chairman for Defra in Worcester.
"The people the Government are seeking to axe aren't bowler-hatted Sir Humphreys based in Whitehall or faceless bureaucrats.
"They provide vital services that touch everybody's lives from cradle to grave."
Across the country, 160 government departments and agencies will join the strike.
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