Barristers are on strike outside the courts of Britain and Wales in a dispute over the funding of the proceedings.
Eight out of ten barristers voted to boycott a new proceeding in a long-standing dispute between the criminal bar association and the government over legal aid funding.
These striking people say that successive government spending cuts have left junior barristers out of work and reduced wages by 28% in 10 years.
They also believe that the extra time taken to accommodate the increasing case load will not be reflected in takeaway payments.
Barristers are the latest to strike following last week’s strike by railroad workers and ongoing reports of anxiety between education staff and NHS employees.
In April, the Criminal Bar Association (CBA) began refusing to carry out repatriation work, described as a well-meaning gesture in favor of the judicial system.
The strike will begin on Monday, June 27th and Tuesday, June 28th, and will continue for four weeks, increasing by one day each week, from Monday, July 18th to Friday, July 22nd, for a five-day strike.
This means that proceedings, including those in the Crown Court, are likely to be postponed.
Barristers have begun staging the picket line outside the courtroom, including Old Bailey in London, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Leeds, and the Crown Court in Manchester.
A criminal barrister said he was “out of his pocket” because of low vocational wages.
Jonathan Ruben told PA news agency outside Old Bailey:
“We aren’t attracting the types of people we were attracting decades ago, because it’s not a sustainable job, it’s a minimum wage, and the payment methods are totally ridiculous.
“I had a commercial job in advance, so I came to that job and saved money, but over the years the savings have been so depleted that I’m essentially a criminal justice system. Has been maintained.
“It had a huge impact on me because I maintain the criminal justice system and invest in ways that the government does not invest. I don’t see many families. I socialize for a very long time. I’m working for an unreasonable time.
“Much of my personal investment is gone. I’m out of my pocket every day.”
Barrister Rebecca Filletti said she was impressive because the criminal justice system was “absolutely at the limit.”
Outside the Manchester Crown Court, she said: I need to do a good job for my clients.
“Today is the first day of my entire career and I am not in court. I will attend if I am ill and if I have a family appointment, but I will downplay this decision. It wouldn’t have happened.
“The reason I made this decision is that things need to change.
“We need to attract more people. We need to get more people working in the criminal justice system because we can’t deal with it. We can’t handle it anymore. It’s exhausted and we’re doing it. The work is underestimated. “
Barristers have warned that the unprocessed portion of approximately 60,000 crown proceedings is adversely affecting defendants, who may have to wait six months or more before going to trial.
Justice Minister Dominic Raab said the barrister’s strike was “regrettable” and “only delayed the justice of the victims.”
Rab said: “It’s a shame that the Criminal Bar Association is impressive, considering that only 43.5% of its members voted for this particular, most destructive option.
“I encourage them to agree to the proposed 15 percent salary increase, which would make a typical barrister earn about £ 7,000 more a year.”
However, a CBA spokesman said the 15% salary increase wouldn’t land immediately as it wouldn’t apply to untreated cases.
They say: “Existing charges will remain in all cases remaining in this record backlog until we conclude that they can be years ahead.”
By the end of April, there were 58,271 outstanding cases, according to HM Courts and Tribunal Service statistics.
Jo Sidhu QC, chairman of the Criminal Bar Association, said the action wasn’t just about wages, it “helped to correct the shortage of barristers and deal with the crisis in court.”
“Since 2006, we have already suffered an average 28% decline in real income, and the median junior income in practice for the first three years is only £ 12,200 below the minimum wage,” he said. Told.
Almost 40 percent of junior criminal barristers quit their jobs in a year, Sidhu said.
In the meantime, I added that more than a quarter of professional criminal barristers (about 300) have resigned in the last five years.