MONDAY saw the first day of the Housing Executive’s four-week strike action over pay.

Unite the union has stated that the strike was called after management failed to make any offer to improve pay or meet the pay claim of the members. Workers' demands include a cash payment alongside a consolidated two pay point increase above the national pay offer of 1.75 per cent. Three hundred members are taking part in the strike.

Housing Executive workers have taken part in two strikes already this year, with the union stating the latest strike "represents a clear escalation".

The Housing Executive has said it envisages the strike would impact their response to maintenance services in North and West Belfast as well as Craigavon and Coleraine. Only Emergency repairs would be carried out in those areas during the strike action.

Unite General Secretary Sharon Graham offered her full support to the Housing Executive workers. 

"Retail price inflation is already above 12 percent and is widely forecast to hit 18 percent by the end of the year. In such a cost of living crisis workers need a decent pay increase to protect themselves and their families.

"In announcing this four-week strike, the Northern Ireland Housing Executive workers can count on the full support of my union as they fight to win a decent pay increase. The NIHE should make a better offer to the workers, and they should do that as soon as possible."

Regional Officer for Unite, Michael Keenan warned that the strike is likely to have a severe impact on Housing Executive services,

"NIHE bosses failed to bring forward any concrete proposals to address the pay claim of Unite’s members. They have left their employees with no alternative but to recommence strike action.

"Workplace reps at the Housing Executive are reporting that the service is already facing huge pressures. We are warning that bosses are bringing about a strike that will have potentially severe impact on the services offered by the Housing Executive to tenants.

"The blame for this rests entirely with the Housing Executive which has failed to seriously attempt to resolve this dispute."

People Before Profit’s Gerry Carroll attended the first day of the strike at Stockman’s Lane.

The West Belfast MLA said: "It was important for me to be down as an MLA and a rep to stand by workers who are taking strike action because they’re effectively having their pay reduced at a time of a cost-of-living crisis.

"Given the situation where inflation is due to hit 18 per cent in a few months’ time, where government in Westminister and ministers in Stormont aren’t lifting a finger to ensure that workers have above inflation pay offer. Then the only thing left for people to do is take strike action and take to the streets.

"So I was prepared to do that, I was prepared to stand with them but also with the situation where last time I checked there has been no comment from the Communities Minister, Deirdre Hargey about this strike action.

"She needs to make it clear, if she hasn’t already but I haven’t seen it, that these workers deserve a pay increase, they deserve to be supported and she will do everything possible to ensure that the Housing Executive allocates that money to those workers."