(Bloomberg) -- Staff at the UK statistics agency are refusing to work overtime in a dispute over working from home, an escalation the union claims threatens to disrupt the release of key economic data.
Almost 1,200 members of the Public and Commercial Services union are taking action after being told to work at least two days a week in the office. They are already refusing to comply, and from Aug. 27 will not work overtime.
The escalation “puts at risk meeting the deadline of several time-sensitive publications” as the Office for National Statistics “relies on goodwill” to operate, the union said in a statement Wednesday. An ONS spokesperson said it has “robust plans in place and do not anticipate any disruption to key ONS publications.”
The potential disruption threatens to be another embarrassment for the ONS, which collects crucial economic data on inflation, the labor market and growth.
The ONS is facing scrutiny after temporarily suspending its Labour Force Survey last year over accuracy problems following a plunge in survey responses. The disruption to the jobs data, including its measure for unemployment, has made it difficult for the Bank of England to judge the strength of the labor market. Those questions were raised again by economists this week after an unexpected slide in the jobless rate.
It also comes at a crucial time as the UK central bank relies on the data to judge how quickly it can reduce interest rates. While it started to cut rates from a 16-year high earlier this month, there is still uncertainty over the pace at which the BOE will ease policy.
The move by the ONS comes amid wider pressure on UK civil servants to return to the office after a deterioration in Britain’s public services since the pandemic struck.
“We still believe firmly that a reasonable level of office attendance — in line with the wider civil service — is in the best interests of the ONS and of all our colleagues,” the ONS spokesperson said. “Face-to-face interaction supports personal collaboration, learning and innovation.”
The UK Statistics Authority, which includes the ONS and Office for Statistical Regulation, employs more than 5,000 staff with the PCS representing almost a quarter of them.
©2024 Bloomberg L.P.
