1989–1990 British ambulance strike
The 1989–1990 British ambulance strike was part of a dispute over pay between ambulance crews and the government, with action lasting from 7 September 1989 to 23 February 1990. Ambulance workers were aggrieved that their pay had fallen behind that of firefighters with which it had been linked in 1985. A government pay offer of 7.5% was rejected by the five ambulance workers unions, which demanded a 25.8% rise. Union action started with an overtime ban but escalated to a full refusal of crews to attend non-emergency calls in November. The government used the British Army, volunteer ambulances and the police to mitigate the effects of the strike. A pay deal of 16.9% was reached on 23 February 1990 and the ambulance crews returned to work. The strike was regarded as a success for the union, which had carefully cultivated public opinion throughout. Background Ambulance provision in the United Kingdom was organised on a local basis by separate ambulance services. The pay and the conditions of employees in those services had last been agreed by the Standing Commission on Pay Comparability in 1979. The commission recognised that morale was low and recommended a pay increase of 25.8% while annual inflation was around 16%. However, the ambulance workers had gone on strike in 1981 to 1982 over pay, with emergency cover being provided by the police. As a result of the strike, a new salary scale was agreed in November 1985 that linked pay to that of firefighters. The fire brigades union and the police secured favourable pay settlements, which broke the link, and by 1989, ambulance workers were paid 11% less than firefighters. The ambulance workers, represented by five trade unions, considered that they had been forgotten and that the service was being run "on the cheap". The unions sought to restore the link established in the 1985 settlement and petitioned the government for a £20 per week pay rise for their members. They also wanted funding to train their members in paramedic skills. The Conservative government, led by Margaret Thatcher, was keen not to raise inflation by awarding further pay increases. It was also carrying out reform of the National Health Service and thought that would be cemented by a win over the unions. In May 1989, the government offered a 7.5% pay rise; the unions recommended their members to accept that, but it was rejected by a large majority. The unions seemed to have underestimated their members' feelings. Limited service Ambulance service crews voted on 7 September 4:1 to implement an overtime ban and a ban on rest-day working from 13 September. The ambulance services had relied on those additional hours to provide non-emergency services such as the transport of patients between hospitals. The services mitigated the effect of the union action by using private taxis to transport patients and asking, if possible, for patients to provide their own transport. Health Secretary Kenneth Clarke rejected an offer by the unions to enter arbitration on 22 September and caused