THOUSANDS of public sector workers have gone out on strike over changes to their pension by the Government.

Here is the view from the picket lines this morning.

Town Hall picket.

Council workers who are members of Unison were protesting outside the town hall early on Wednesday.

Pam Howard, joint branch secretary of Unison, said: “It’s not just to protect the pensions of people now but for future generations and to keep people out of poverty in their old age.

“People are having to work longer and longer. A lot of people working for the council are doing manual jobs, it’s not fair making them work longer.”

Pauline Cripps added: “We were out on strike in 2006 over pensions we have already had changes, why are they reneging on the decision from then?”

Hilden House picket.

STAFF from the Department for Work and Pensions were manning a picket line outside their office at Hilden House.

Nicola Bolderstone said: “We are going to be paying more to get less. How are you supposed to support yourself after you retire?

“There are 600 people in this building, if I’m paying an extra £20-£30 a month how much is that going to be out of Warrington’s economy? They only way people can cope with the expense is to spend less.

“It’s the only thing they seem to listen to. It costs a lot and its something you don’t take lightly as you can’t afford to lose a day’s pay but when you look at it compared to the money I will lose over the years it’s better than that.”