Bank of England faces first ever Threadneedle Street strike

Bank of England staff at its head office in Threadneedle Street are to strike for the first time in the institution's 323-year history, says The Guardian.

The Unite union said that 95 per cent of balloted staff working in areas such as security, hospitality and maintenance had voted for a four-day walkout starting on 31 July.

These workers, who earn "as little as £20,000" according to the Financial Times, are unhappy that total pay rises across the bank have been capped at one per cent and that a third of staff will not get any rise at all.

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Bosses at the bank have the power to set pay rates independently but they have chosen to abide by the public sector pay cap, which is set at one per cent until 2020.

That already-legislated measure has been the subject of mounting controversy and many even within the senior ranks of the Conservative party are pushing for it to be lifted.

Inflation is currently running at 2.9 per cent, meaning public sector and Bank of England workers are facing a fall in the value of their pay.

Unite regional officer Mercedes Sanchez said Bank of England governor Mark Carney should "get his own house in order” and stop turning a “blind eye to what is happening on his own patch".

The union has refused to disclose how many of the 4,000 staff at the central bank would take part in the strike, but it reckons the action would render Threadneedle Street "inoperable".

There has never been a walkout at the iconic head office, with the last strike by central bank staff coming in the late 1960s by staff at its Essex printing plant, says the Guardian.

A spokesperson for the Bank of England denied that the walkout would shut Threadneedle Street and said it has "contingency plans in place" - and pointed out that the strike ballot was of just two per cent of the workforce.

"We will continue to have discussions with Unite and hope that there will be a positive outcome," the spokesperson added.