It has begun

As far as feats of clairvoyancy goes this was very much beginner level. Last week, I predicted more trade unions would follow Unison in planning strike ballots over the government’s decision to peg public sector pay to 2.45%.

And so it has come to pass. Today the Public and Commercial Services union has announced it’s getting on board with the idea of a summer of discontent. (If you are interested to know what the rest of the unions think then try here.)

So we now have to wait and see whether the government sticks by its pay plans, which have been vaunted by Labour as a great example of how it is keeping inflation in check. The PCS is actually not officially affiliated to Labour – will that make any difference? Who knows? Will Labour remember 4 out of 5 people (or voters rather) are in the private sector and would have to pay for any wage hikes? Once again, we’ll have to wait and see.

No doubt the unions will be shedding a tear for managers amid all of this. A report out today says redundancy rates amongst the UK's senior executives are at their highest level for seven years.