Revenue Staff Walk Out In Protest Over Tax Credit Management
PCS | 23.05.2003 14:03
Hundreds of Inland Revenue staff across the country have walked out of their offices today (Thursday 22 May 2003) in protest at management’s handling of the New Tax Credit programme. Staff in East Kilbride, Coatbridge, Dunfermline, Sunderland and Manchester, staged fifteen minute walk outs today in response to the difficult and stressful work conditions created by the New Tax Credit roll out.
The staff, members of the Public and Commercial Services Union (PCS), have been working hard in very stressful circumstances to ensure that tax credit payments are made to those in need. They have borne the brunt of customer frustrations with the failures of the new system, at the same time as they have seen their workload more than double. Phone call volumes rose so much that they swamped the system [9m attempted calls to IR Contact Centres across the UK on one day alone] and there has been a huge rise in the number of drop-in enquiries at tax offices. In some case the increased number of customers has lead to offices being shut to avoid chaotic overcrowding and ensure the safety of both customers and staff.
The protests follow a debate earlier this week at the PCS Inland Revenue annual conference where delegates threatened industrial action over the chaos caused by the introduction of the government’s New Tax Credit (NTC) scheme and called for the resignations of those deemed responsible.
Graham Steel, PCS National Officer, said:
“ Our members have been brilliant in the face of extreme pressure, having been inundated with phone calls and drop in callers to the offices. They have pulled out all the stops to make sure that claimants receive their payments as quickly as possible. They understand that the people lodging the claims desperately require the payments and are sympathetic to their frustration. The problems people are now experiencing are not of my members making, yet they are on the receiving end of customers frustration. Staff have staged these spontaneous protests because they feel they are not receiving the support they deserve from management. What they require is a more reliable computer system, better training and more staff to handle the extra workload.”
Mark Serwotka, PCS General Secretary, said:
“This spontanoues protest was for many members the last resort. We urge Inland Revenue management to work with PCS in finding a solution to these problems.”
For further information and interviews please contact:
Marney Crainey
Campaigns Officer
Public and Commercial Services Union
Tel: 020 7801 2820
Email:
marney@pcs.org.uk
Web: www.pcs.org.uk
PCS, 160 Falcon Rd, London SW11 2LN
The protests follow a debate earlier this week at the PCS Inland Revenue annual conference where delegates threatened industrial action over the chaos caused by the introduction of the government’s New Tax Credit (NTC) scheme and called for the resignations of those deemed responsible.
Graham Steel, PCS National Officer, said:
“ Our members have been brilliant in the face of extreme pressure, having been inundated with phone calls and drop in callers to the offices. They have pulled out all the stops to make sure that claimants receive their payments as quickly as possible. They understand that the people lodging the claims desperately require the payments and are sympathetic to their frustration. The problems people are now experiencing are not of my members making, yet they are on the receiving end of customers frustration. Staff have staged these spontaneous protests because they feel they are not receiving the support they deserve from management. What they require is a more reliable computer system, better training and more staff to handle the extra workload.”
Mark Serwotka, PCS General Secretary, said:
“This spontanoues protest was for many members the last resort. We urge Inland Revenue management to work with PCS in finding a solution to these problems.”
For further information and interviews please contact:
Marney Crainey
Campaigns Officer
Public and Commercial Services Union
Tel: 020 7801 2820
Email:
marney@pcs.org.uk Web: www.pcs.org.uk
PCS, 160 Falcon Rd, London SW11 2LN
PCS
Homepage:
http://www.pcs.org.uk
Comments
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Quite right, too...
24.05.2003 21:05
The problems are that, firstly, the people at the top are involved in turf wars with other depts (DWP, Custom & Excise), and keep saying to the government, "Oh *we* can do that work, Minister! Oh, and *that* work as well!..." Of course, when it comes down to actually demanding sufficient resources (staff, time, money, equipment), their backbones all go off on holiday.
Then, there is the fact that the dept's IT was forcibly privatised a decade ago to Ross Perot's EDS. When it was run in-house, the people we dealt with knew about the way the tax system works. EDS doesn't, so doesn't understand the importance of getting it right, and getting it right in time for the system to go live. As a consequence, the computer programs for all of the new systems which have been brought in since the mid-90s have been unstable and botched. The computer program for the tax credit system is the most unreliable, unstable and badly-performing of all of them. In order to meet the Treasury's target for introducing the credits, the job was rushed and then rolled out before most of the bugs could be ironed out of it.
EDS' contract runs out next year, but they have put together another bid. Anyone want to bet against them getting another 10 years of wasting our money and screwing things up?
I have seen a number of my colleagues reduced to tears by the pressure they are coming under to meet the unrealistic targets agreed by the fivepenny brains in senior management (all of whom will get their nice pensions and an OBE or two). Unfortunately, our local PCS reps didn't seem to be able to organise a walk-out on Thursday for some reason.
Judge_Mental