Nottinghamshire teachers, nurses and rail workers all set for fresh strikes in March

Teachers in the National Education Union in Nottinghamshire will strike again on Wednesday, March 1. as part of a regional action throughout the East Midlands along with teachers in the West Midlands and Eastern England.

The NEU is planning its largest demonstration in the Nottingham on the day, starting at noon at Forest Recreation Ground, and marching to Market Square for speeches and a rally.

Nick Raine, NEU in the East Midlands senior regional officer, said: “No teacher takes strike action lightly, but our members feel they have been given no choice.

"This is a strike to not only improve teacher retention, but to secure a better future for children across Nottinghamshire.”

Rail workers who are members of the RMT Union at 14 rail operators, including East Midlands Railway, will be staging 24-hour walkouts on March 16, 18 and 30 and April 1.

It is likely that, as with previous strikes, this will mean no services on strike days on the Robin Hood Line between Nottingham and Worksop, which serves places Mansfield, Hucknall, Bulwell, Shirebrook, Kirkby and Sutton, while a skeleton mainline service will likely run between Nottingham and London.

Mick Lynch, RMT general secretary, said: "Rail employers are not being given a fresh mandate by the Government to offer our members a new deal on pay, conditions and job security.

“Therefore, our members will now take sustained and targeted industrial action over the next few months.”

Nurses in England have announced their biggest strike so far, with tens of thousands of NHS nurses, including A&E workers, set to walk out for 48 hours from 6am on Wednesday, March 1.

The Royal College of Nurses has said the strikes will now include all services, meaning action will include emergency workers, intensive care units, cancer care and other departments, not previously involved in the industrial action.

Pat Cullen, RCN general secretary and chief executive, said: “It is with a heavy heart I have asked even more nursing staff to join this dispute.

“These strikes will not just run for longer and involve more people, but will leave no area of the NHS unaffected.

“Patients and nurses alike did not want this to happen but by refusing to negotiate with nurses, the Prime Minister is pushing even more people into the strike.

“He must listen to NHS leaders and not let this go ahead.

“I will do whatever I can to ensure patient safety is protected.”

And postal strikes also look set to resume at some point after the Communication Workers Union, which represents 114,000 Royal Mail workers, said 95.7 per cent of its members had voted in favour of a renewed mandate – with a 77 per cent turnout – although no new strike dates have yet been announced.