Commentator Mike Parry has branded Metropolitan Police staff plans to strike over work from home policies as "unbelievable".
Speaking to GB News, Parry criticised workers who are refusing to return to the office after being told they could not work remotely full-time.
"These are vital emergency services, and like everything else, I believe in the working from home principle, but if you're not sitting next to a colleague, you might not be able to put two facts together and come up with the solution to a problem," he said.
Over 300 civilian staff members at the Metropolitan Police will strike for two weeks next month in an escalating dispute over working arrangements.
The strike action, set to run from February 4 to 17, will involve staff in the Referencing and Vetting departments.
The dispute has escalated after Scotland Yard warned the Public and Commercial Services Union that workers' pay would be docked if they didn't return to their desks.
PCS General Secretary Fran Heathcote has condemned the Met's approach to the dispute, describing it as "completely counter-productive".
Delivering his verdict on the strike, Parry fumed: "Hundreds of workers, including 999 call handlers, PCSOs and child protection experts are refusing to return to the office after being told they could not work at home all the time, and this is the crucial issue.
"It's unbelievable. We know that in the modern workplace, there are agreements for two days a week, three days a week, but this is because they want to work at home all the time."
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The strike is expected to cause significant disruption to the force's backroom operations.
Union officials have warned that the National Crime Database will not be updated during the strike period.
The action may also result in delays to staff vetting procedures, potentially impacting the Met's operational capabilities.
The dispute stems from a new hybrid working policy introduced by the Met in 2023, requiring staff to be present in the office for 60 per cent of their working hours.
Heathcote explained that staff felt forced into strike action by management's stance on pay deductions.
"Our members take their jobs very seriously and didn't want to disrupt the important work they do," she said. "If they'll lose pay when they're not striking, they felt they might as well lose pay for striking," she added.
The union leader called for dialogue rather than punitive measures from management.
"Instead of pouring fuel on the fire by punishing our members for exercising their democratic right to take industrial action, managers should talk to us and try to resolve the issue," she said.
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Speaking to GB News, Parry criticised workers who are refusing to return to the office after being told they could not work remotely full-time.
"These are vital emergency services, and like everything else, I believe in the working from home principle, but if you're not sitting next to a colleague, you might not be able to put two facts together and come up with the solution to a problem," he said.
Over 300 civilian staff members at the Metropolitan Police will strike for two weeks next month in an escalating dispute over working arrangements.
The strike action, set to run from February 4 to 17, will involve staff in the Referencing and Vetting departments.
The dispute has escalated after Scotland Yard warned the Public and Commercial Services Union that workers' pay would be docked if they didn't return to their desks.
PCS General Secretary Fran Heathcote has condemned the Met's approach to the dispute, describing it as "completely counter-productive".
Delivering his verdict on the strike, Parry fumed: "Hundreds of workers, including 999 call handlers, PCSOs and child protection experts are refusing to return to the office after being told they could not work at home all the time, and this is the crucial issue.
"It's unbelievable. We know that in the modern workplace, there are agreements for two days a week, three days a week, but this is because they want to work at home all the time."
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The strike is expected to cause significant disruption to the force's backroom operations.
Union officials have warned that the National Crime Database will not be updated during the strike period.
The action may also result in delays to staff vetting procedures, potentially impacting the Met's operational capabilities.
The dispute stems from a new hybrid working policy introduced by the Met in 2023, requiring staff to be present in the office for 60 per cent of their working hours.
Heathcote explained that staff felt forced into strike action by management's stance on pay deductions.
"Our members take their jobs very seriously and didn't want to disrupt the important work they do," she said. "If they'll lose pay when they're not striking, they felt they might as well lose pay for striking," she added.
The union leader called for dialogue rather than punitive measures from management.
"Instead of pouring fuel on the fire by punishing our members for exercising their democratic right to take industrial action, managers should talk to us and try to resolve the issue," she said.
Find Out More...