HMRC employer helpline strikes extended to mid May

Sara White, Editor, Business & Accountancy Daily

Businesses using employer helplines will be affected by another two months of strike action at HMRC’s Newcastle as union calls for HMRC to ‘get around the table’

The long-running action is now affecting service delivery, with HMRC urging employers to go online to deal with their enquiries, rather than phoning Employer Services and construction industry scheme (CIS) helplines with queries and to resolve issues. The CIS page has been updated to reflect the new strike dates.

HMRC does not comment on staff employment matters but stressed that the strike is only affecting 0.5% of its workforce. However, it acknowledged that ‘customers may experience longer wait times - we are advising customers of this on our website and through a record message’. 

Several hundred staff working on HMRC’s Employer Services helplines at the Benton View office in Newcastle have extended their strike action for a further nine weeks affecting employer helpline and construction industry scheme services. The strike action was due to end on 14 March.

‘Members working in the branch report that backlogs continue to grow and the services to the customer continue to deteriorate,’ the Public & Commercial Services Union (PCS) said in a statement on its website. 

Concerns about the impact on non-striking staff and customer service have also surfaced, with ‘no let up in call queues’ and undertrained staff handling calls.

The PCS added: ‘Members in other areas have reported calls being received from agents who would usually have called the Employer Services (ES) helpline but who have become frustrated by long waits and even calls being blocked due to the volumes of outstanding calls.

‘These problems are only getting worse and the impact on both the customers, and the staff asked to deal with these calls, is something that HMRC should be taking very seriously. 

‘Staff on these lines who aren’t trained to deal with these calls have had to either transfer calls to the already overwhelmed ES helpline or offer call backs.’ 

Due to end on 14 March, after one earlier extension, the dispute does not look any closer to resolution, with strike action extended for a second time to 16 May.

A group of more than 250 members working at HMRC’s Newcastle site have been striking since 23 December, affecting key employer helplines.

The dispute was triggered after three members of the Public & Commercial Services (PCS) were unfairly dismissed by HMRC for their activity as union reps. As a result, HMRC staff have been taking limited strike action since December in a bid to reinstate sacked union reps. 

The union is calling on HMRC to start talks to end the dispute, stressing that ‘PCS members in Benton Park View have told us they’re more determined than ever to win back their reps’ jobs and with members showing no signs of wavering in their support, continuing to refuse talks can only further damage the performance of HMRC and hurt its reputation…now is the time to get around the table and resolve the dispute.’

Throughout the strike, HMRC has stressed that helplines will be ‘open as usual’.

An HMRC spokesperson told Business & Accountancy Daily: ‘We have robust plans in place to ensure we continue delivering critical services for our customers during any industrial action.’

In the latest service update on the CIS general enquiries page on gov.uk, HMRC noted the extension, stating: ‘Due to industrial action from 23 December 2024 to 16 May 2025, you may wait longer than usual to speak to an adviser using webchat.

‘If you can, you should use our online services rather than waiting to speak to us.’

‘For example, you can check when you can expect a reply from HMRC to find out the status of your Construction Industry Scheme refund — you should only call us if the date has passed, and use your business tax account to check your balance’.

When calling the affected CIS helpline, a recorded message states ‘the average recent was on this line was 10 minutes’, and recommended ‘if you can, you should use our online services rather than waiting to speak to us on the phone’.

HMRC is keeping the opening hours and service levels under review and will provide updates in advance of any changes by updating gov.uk and the recorded message that callers hear when they reach the helplines.