Tuesday 17 January 2023
For operational use only, not for publication or broadcast
When: Wednesday 18 January 2023, 8am-5pm
Where: Various Environment Agency sites across England
Who: All job roles in those services
Environment Agency workers belonging to UNISON to strike over pay
Thousands of Environment Agency staff working across England will tomorrow (Wednesday) be taking part in strike action over pay for the first time in their history*.
Workers who maintain important safety structures such as the Thames Barrier, coastal sea defences and those protecting communities from floods, water pollution, spills, waste fires and fly-tipping will walk out from 8am to 5pm.
UNISON general secretary Christina McAnea will be meeting striking workers at the Thames Barrier near Woolwich from 10am to 11am.
Key UNISON picket lines and locations (those with spokespeople available for interview are in bold):
London
Thames Barrier (10:00 to 13:00) Thames Barrier, Eastmoor Street, Charlton SE7 8LX (follow signs for the information centre)
East Anglia
Peterborough (08:00 to 12:00) Kingfisher House, Goldhay Way, Orton Goldhay, Peterborough PE2 5ZR
Lincoln (08:00 to 12:00) Ceres House, 2 Searby Road, Lincoln LN2 4DW
Norwich (08:00 to 12:00) Dragonfly House, 2 Gilders Way, Norwich NR3 1UB
Midlands
Nottingham (08:00 to 17:00) Trentside, Scarrington Road, West Bridgford, Nottingham NG2 5FA
Shrewsbury (08:00 to 10:00) Hafren House, Welshpool Road, Shelton, Shrewsbury SY3 8BB
Tewkesbury (08:00 to 10:00) Northway Lane, Tewkesbury GL20 8JG
North East
Newcastle (08:00 to 10:30) Tyneside House, Elswick, Newcastle-upon-Tyne NE4 7AR
North West
Warrington (08:00 to 13:00) Richard Fairclough House, Knutsford Road, Latchford, Warrington WA4 1HT
Preston (08:00 to 13:00) Lutra House, Dodd Way (off Seedlee Road), Walton Summit Centre, Bamber Bridge, Preston PR5 8BX
Penrith (08:00 to 13:00) Ghyll Mount, Penrith CA11 9GQ
Northwich (08:00 to 12:00) The Bullring (junction of London Road and Chester Way), Northwich CW9 5HD
South East
Romsey (08.00 to 12:00) Romsey District Office, Station Road, Romsey SO51 7LP
Reading (08:00 to 15:00) King’s Meadow House, King’s Meadow Road, Reading RG1 8DQ
Worthing (08.00 to 12.00) Guildbourne House, Chatsworth Road, Worthing BN11 1LD
Canterbury (08.00 to 12.00) Rivers House, Sturry Road, Canterbury CT2 7LP
South West
Exeter (08:00 to 13:00) Manley House, Kestrel Way, Exeter EX2 7LQ
Bideford (08:00 to 13:00) Alverdiscott Depot, Unit 4-5, Alverdiscott Road Industrial Estate, Bideford EX39 4LQ
Bridgwater (08:30 to 10:30) Rivers House Office, East Quay, Bridgwater TA6 4YS
Bristol (08:00 to 10:00) Horizon House, Deanery Road, Bristol BS1 5AH
Bodmin (08:00 to 10:00) Sir John Moore House, Victoria Square, Bodmin PL31 1EB
Exeter Starcross (08:00 to 13:00) Staplake Mount, Starcross, Exeter EX6 8PE
Yorkshire
Leeds (08:00 to 10:30) Lateral, 8 City Walk, Leeds LS11 9AT
Sheffield (08:00 to 10:30) Quadrant 2, 99 Parkway Avenue, Sheffield S9 4WF
Notes to editors:
– *This is the first Environment Agency strike over pay but not the first strike involving staff there. They previously took action over the threat to their pensions just over a decade ago.
– Last month, thousands of workers at the agency took part in industrial action short of a strike by working to rule. This means they worked only their contracted hours, taking all their scheduled breaks and full rest time between shifts. Employees also refused to volunteer to be ‘on call’ and deal with live incidents last month and over sections of the festive period.
– UNISON is the UK’s largest union and the largest union in the NHS and in the ambulance sector, with more than 1.3 million members providing public services – in education, local government, the NHS, police service and energy. They are employed in the public, voluntary and private sectors.
Media contacts:
Liz Chinchen M: 07778 158175 E: press@unison.co.uk
Anthony Barnes M: 07834 864794 E: a.barnes@unison.co.uk
London: Emma Davey M: 07432 733187 E: e.davey@unison.co.ukEast Anglia: James Rodie M: 07904 415895 E: j.rodie@unison.co.uk
North East: Paul Riley M: 07903 807641 E: p.riley@unison.co.uk
North West: Sam Doherty M: 07432 549759 E: s.doherty@unison.co.uk
Midlands: Rebecca Dalton M: 07956 852145 E: r.dalton@unison.co.uk
South East: Kieran Pearson M: 07432 741595 E: k.pearson@unison.co.uk
South West: Oliver Foster-Burnell M: 07432 150532 E: o.foster-burnell@unison.co.uk
Yorkshire: Jamie Thompson M: 07432 735172 E: j.thompson@unison.co.uk