A total of 1,200 troops are set to be deployed during the UK’s Christmas strike wave to prevent rescue operations and airport border control from being completely paralyzed over the festive period.
Major unrest is expected in England, Wales and Northern Ireland due to strikes by ambulances, airport border guards and railway workers. Related unions are demanding higher wages, as are nurses, postal workers, rail workers, bus drivers at Abilio and highway builders, who have already gone on strike this week.
The staff are not happy
The Chief of Staff of the British Army, Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, said that they did not have the spare capacity to cover various strikes, and that was none of their business.
At the same time, they are ready to send 1,200 soldiers to the emergency services and airports to smooth out at least completely indefensible disturbances. Ambulances will perform logistical tasks and replace drivers. They participate in the screening of passengers at airports.
Another strike by the nurses at the beginning of the week and the ambulances stopped working at the end of the week to teach the lesson
The nurses’ strike on December 15th will be followed by another strike on December 20th. Their union (RCN) will give the government 48 hours to start wage negotiations, or face more sweeping measures in the new year.
Ambulances will not run in England and Wales for one day and then the 28th. They also go out to save lives these days, but they don’t go out to patients who are not in danger. In these cases, it is planned that the military will take over their duties.
There will be problems with public transport, railways and airport border control in the first week of January as well
Rail workers and Aplio bus drivers will strike next week and in the first week of January. The first will test the patience of residents from the 24th to the 29th, and then most of the first week of January. Abellio buses will not run as usual on the 24th, 27th and 31st, and in the first week of the new year, on January 4th and 5th.
Many airlines have stopped selling tickets for flights to Heathrow due to the Christmas chaos
75 per cent of border control workers have joined the strike call at Birmingham, Cardiff, Glasgow and Manchester airports, as well as at Gatwick and Heathrow. The shutdown lasts from the 22nd to the 26th and then from the 28th to the 31st. Baggage handlers will not start working at these airports on January 1 either. Although many airlines have suspended ticket sales for Christmas flights to and from London, passengers with tickets already sold out can face long waits at Heathrow and Gatwick.
The military is deploying soldiers and the government is reassigning civilian employees to these airports to minimize disruption as much as possible.
Affected airports expect 70-80 percent of pre-pandemic traffic in the next two weeks.
source: BBC
