The public sector cannot have its cake and eat it. Either contiue with your protected final salary pensions and face up to minimal pay rises; or transfer to the pension option so many of us in the private sector now have and enjoy increased annual pay-rises.

AJM, Leeds, UK

Where are you getting your ideas about public sector workers from. Nurses, police, probation, and teachers to name only a few, work very hard every day serving you. Show them the courtesy they deserve if not the salary. Strike and keep striking guys til this govt reealises how valuable we are.

Ania , west mids,

Any one of this group of public servants going out on strike causes disruption and problems
Yet MPs take a long summer recess and the country still runs admirably.
This tells us who should get a pay rise and who shouldn't !!

Richard Garland, Manchester,

Here here Sean Langstone!!

Public sector workers seem to think they have a divine right to pay increases. Welcome to the real world, get used to it!!

Dan, Cambridge, UK

Hmm. Striking in the summer holidays. Smart move from those dinner ladies and lollipop wardens.

Pietr, Dundee, UK

It was the trade unions which brought down the labour government in 1979. Do they really expect the Tories to be more sympathetic to their demands ? Keeping inflation in check has been a major achievement, let's not throw it away. As a teacher, I would rather lose today than for the next 10 years.

Richard, Pershore, Worcs

Labour in chaos, the economy in chaos, unionists on strike. Remind you of anything? Labour in the 1970's next it will be high unemployment unless you work in the public sector, public sector spending wil be funded by the world bank which we are already in debt 45 Billion pound will increase.

steve tea, manchester, cheshire

These people have the luxury of working without need to maintain company profits to keep in their jobs. The rest of us are taxed to death and beyond to keep them in jobs. What do they expect sympathy!!!

Ian, Bristol,

Not only is this pay offer derisory but Teaching Assistants, who will be amongst the strikers I hope, are in the group who are still paying higher tax. I hope we strike and stay out. I would rather starve now than give this wasteful and profligate Government an easy ride.

judy, Liverpool, England

Current average private sector pay rises are 4%. How many of you commenting on here are recieving below inflation pay rises? Im a psychologist who CHOOSES to work for the NHS, why should i suffer pay cuts? But perhaps you'd prefer I work privately instead and exclude those who cant afford it.

Tom, London,

"parking wardens, librarians, lollipop ladies and town hall office staff"-so they strike but will anyone notice or care? I suspect the country will run just fine without them...

Ben, Boris's London, England

The usual vitriol from those not working in the public sector. Staff turnover is high, who wants to work for local government? The pays bad and the only saving grace is a decent pension if you can stomach 40 years in it. Yet even this is being watered down. Same bills to pay and lower wages.

Anon, Winchester,

I wish the public sector would get real on the whole subject of pay and pensions. We all end up paying for these rises. I work in industry and we are lucky to get 2%. In fact sometimes there have been no rises at all but we accept the position of the company at such times.

Sean Langstone, Bridgend, Wales

Looks like Labour has lost control yet again. Brown want last much longer.

D Case, Newquay,

What better reason to justify the private provision of these services? Fire these "public servants" who do nothing but hold us to ransom and drag our economy down. Replace them with competitive private enterprise and watch our taxes fall and service quality go up.

Colin, Cumbernauld, UK

This is exactly what happened under all previous Labour governments. The Treasury gets desperate as it can see state spending exceeding tax-raising/borrowing ability, and tries to clamp down on the wages it controls. It didn't work before and it won't work now. Look forward to extensive strikes.

Colin, shrewsbury,

I am a public sector worker. I want at least a 4% pay rise and don't care one jot where the Government gets the money from.
I will strike until I get it and don't give a fig about the inconvenience caused. Want to blame someone? Blame the Government for screwing up the public finances

clive, dartford,

Can those not in public sector employment have counter-pickets calling for cuts in public sector pensions, holidays and sick days that are the cause of much of the tax rises we have to pay?

Andy, Chester, UK

Could more civil servants and public sector workers please go on strike if only to reduce the cost of employing them?

Ross Connell, Guildford, England

Would it be possible to find out by how much the public sector wage bill has risen under nulab? This would give a far better reflection of the pay rises enjoyed by the public sector workers during the last ten years, than simple pecentage pay rise figures. How many job reassessments have been made?

Tom Mein, Chorafakia, Crete

And Labour will borrow more and more and push the country deeper and deeper into debt to pay-off the public sector workers. The late 70s revisited.

Paul, Coventry,

And when they strike we will all realise that the country continues to function. Let them strike, discover they are surplus to requirements and make all the wastes of money redundant.

John Scott, London,

No. Binmen are already striking and will continue not over below-inflation pay deals but pay cuts of £1,000s of pounds to fit bogus 'equal value' pay legislation that is sex discrimination against men. Arbitrary pay scales equate dirty jobs with clean ones.
(Steve Moxon, author of The Woman Racket)

Steve Moxon, Sheffield,