Civil servants vote to strike after being ordered to work three-days-a-week in-person
Thousands of civil servants at the Land Registry have voted to strike over new requirements forcing them to work from the office three days per week.
The industrial action comes after management issued the new work ultimatum, marking a significant shift from increased home working arrangements introduced during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020.
The dispute adds to a growing wave of civil service industrial action over office attendance requirements, with similar conflicts emerging across multiple government departments.
Around 3,800 Public and Commercial Services union (PCS) members across 14 Land Registry offices have backed the strike action.
The affected offices span the country, including locations in Croydon, Birkenhead, Coventry, Durham, Lancashire and Gloucester.
Additional sites where staff voted to strike include Hull, Leicester, Nottingham, Peterborough, Plymouth, Telford, Wales and Weymouth.
The exact timing and potential impact of the industrial action remains unclear, with the Land Registry yet to receive formal notification of strike dates from the PCS union.
PCS general secretary Fran Heathcote strongly criticised Sir Keir Starmer’s approach to office attendance.
“The Government doesn’t seem to learn that applying arbitrary targets on office attendance doesn’t increase productivity and is unpopular with staff members,” she said.
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Heathcote added: “If they want a motivated, hard-working workforce, ministers should trust their own employees to have some say over their working conditions, rather than acting like Victorian bosses.”
She urged management to “avoid strike action by ending this dispute.”
The potential impact of any strike action on property transactions, including house purchases and sales, remains uncertain.
A Land Registry spokesman acknowledged receiving the ballot results but noted they had not yet received formal notification of any upcoming industrial action.
“HM Land Registry will respond as needed to maintain essential services as we have done during previous periods of industrial action,” the spokesman said.
The Land Registry dispute reflects a broader pattern of civil service industrial action over office attendance policies.
Staff at the Office of National Statistics have already voted to strike over compulsory office attendance requirements.
More than 2,400 civilian Metropolitan Police staff also launched their first-ever industrial action last week over office attendance directives.
The dispute at the Met Police involves resistance to increasing office presence from 40 to 60 per cent, 60 to 80 per cent, or 80 to 100 per cent.
Meanwhile, workers at both the Department for Food and Rural Affairs and the Ministry of Housing are campaigning for four-day weeks.
The industrial action will affect Land Registry operations across multiple regions of England and Wales.
The 14 offices where members voted to strike include major urban centres like Croydon, Birkenhead and Coventry.
Staff at facilities in Durham, Lancashire, Gloucester, Hull and Leicester have also backed the action.
Additional locations impacted by the strike vote include Nottingham, Peterborough, Plymouth and Telford.
The industrial action will also affect operations at offices in Wales and Weymouth.
These sites represent key operational hubs for the Land Registry’s property registration services.