UNIONS fear that mounting financial pressure on the States could seriously hinder pay negotiations for teachers, nurses and civil servants.

The respective unions for the public sector workers joined to write a letter to Chief Minister Lyndon Trott expressing their concern at the latest inflation figure of 5.5%. States Works staff are set to walk out on strike action on Monday over the failure of the Public Sector Remuneration Committee to offer them a suitable pay rise.

Frank Allen (pictured), national secretary of Prospect, which looks after civil servants, said the collective representatives needed to meet the Policy Council as soon as possible.

‘With inflation running the way it is and being unlikely to come down, we are worried about the impact it will have on the States,’ he said. ‘You have an employer that for a long time has been saying it must curb expenditure and then on the other hand you have 5.5% inflation that is also likely to go higher. It’s going to increase pressure on the States and we cannot just bury our heads in the sand.’