The Public and Commercial Services union announced yesterday that members voted two to one for industrial action as part of a national campaign.
Members of the public face cancelled driving tests, delayed passports, closed benefit offices and museums, plus disruption at airports and ports in what the union described as the first step in a concerted campaign.
Mark Serwotka, general secretary of the PCS, accused the government of a "slash-and-burn" approach to public services. He said: "The people going on strike aren't faceless bureaucrats, but people providing essential services that are consistently taken for granted. They ... face massive uncertainty about their jobs and the prospect of having to work five more years to receive their pension."
Ministers condemned the action. They say the union does not have the full support of its members - just 42% of the 265,000 who received ballot papers returned them. The union said 72,780 voted for the walkout, with 40,142 against.
The industrial action promises to be the most widespread in the civil service since protests in 1993 against Tory plans to privatise parts of the public sector. The PCS is also locked in disputes over sick leave and pensions in what looks likely to be a protracted confrontation.
Only 6,000 of the 104,000 jobs are due to go before the general election expected next spring, and the union will seek to make it a campaign issue.
