Border Force workers on patrol in the English Channel, whose job includes searching for small boats carrying illegal migrants, will be balloted over strike action, a union statement on Friday said.
More than 120 Border Force Maritime workers will be balloted over whether to walk-out in a dispute over frozen allowances and terms and conditions, the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union said.
The ballot is open until October 17.
As part of government border force patrols, the workers' duties include searching for vessels at sea and identifying boats engaged in smuggling as well as small boats crossing with “asylum seekers” from France.
So far this year, 30,000 people have used small boats to cross the Channel to Britain, where immigration has become a major political issue.
On Thursday, the UK's interior ministry announced that it had returned an illegal migrant to France, the first removal under a new migrant returns scheme agreed upon in July.
(Reporting by Sarah Young, Editing by Paul Sandle)
