Strike action continues across the UK as nurses strike for better pay and conditions.

This is not the case in Cumbria, however, where the nurses who were balloted for strike action did not return a majority, giving the mandate to strike.

However, Cumbria is no stranger to strike action, as workers across different sectors are taking strike action over numerous issues including pay, working conditions, and pensions.

The government has called an emergency Cobra meeting to discuss how to cope with the upcoming strikes including a plan to use members of the armed forces to help hospitals cope with the NHS strikes.

A spokesperson from North Cumbria Integrated Care (NCIC) said on this: ““Members of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) and Unison working at North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust (NCIC) will not be taking strike action on December 15 or 20.

“The RCN and Unison have informed us that the ballot did not meet the required thresholds for industrial action.

“This means that if you have an appointment on either of these dates, please attend as normal unless you are contacted by the Trust to make a change for another reason.

“Our services are under a lot of pressure at the moment but anyone who needs urgent medical care should continue to come forward, especially in emergency and life-threatening cases.

“Alternative services such as GPs, pharmacies and NHS 111 will also be available.”

This winter has seen some of the largest scale industrial action seen in the UK since the 1980s with workers, many of whom were classed as key workers in the pandemic, asking for pay rises at inflation level or above to help cope with the rise in the cost-of-living.

Union members who are part of the Northwest and Northeast ambulance services will walk out on December 21.

The unions have said they will offer “life and limb” cover during the walkouts but details of which patients will be prioritised have not yet been confirmed.

Additionally, and some of the first to make national headlines with strike action this decade, RMT union members will again be on strike today and tomorrow, after picketing most of this week.

Services on major services in Cumbria, such as Northern, TransPennine Express, and Avanti West Coast, are all affected by the RMT’s long-standing dispute over job security and pay, with no end in sight until a satisfactory progression is made.

What’s more is postal workers are continuing to walk out, including those who work at the Carlisle delivery office, as union members are seen picketing outside almost every week.

For the future, junior doctors and teachers are also being balloted, meaning strike action is well on the way to being 2023’s most poignant political issue.

Oli Slack, GMB regional organiser in Cumbria, spoke on why the nation is seemingly going on strike together: "The rich are getting richer, and the poor are getting poorer.

"People are realising they're never going to get paid what they're worth, they're only going to get paid for what they fight for.

"Industrial action does and needs to cause disruption, but we need the public behind us.

"Somebody's got to stand up for workers.

"It's the government that's caused this, you've got so many working class people that are voting Tory, and they believe they're upper class, but they're working class, and they need to realise this to work together."

READ MORE: Police appeal for witnesses after 80-year-old man dies in crash