ABOUT 250 Oxfordshire civil servants working in job centres, tax offices and courts began a 48-hour strike yesterday.

Public and Commercial Services Union (PCSU) members chose not to work because of a Government proposal to alter long-standing redundancy terms.

The Oxfordshire staff were among 270,000 civil servants taking part in the nationwide two-day strike.

Tracey Rogers, pictured front, the PCSU representative at Jobcentre Plus in George Street, Oxford, said: “Out of 120 staff working at the job centre only about 20 went into work and the majority of those were not union members.

“We feel very sorry for the jobseekers visiting our office but we are taking this action as a last resort.”

JobCentre Plus personal advisor Sharon Telford, 45, from Cowley, said job seekers would not get full interviews or assessments until a later date as a result of the dispute.

She added: “I have worked here for 25 years, so if my redundancy is reduced by a third, I will lose out on thousands of pounds.”

Revenue and Customs staff in Banbury and at Oxford Business Park also took part.

A spokesman for Oxford Magistrates’ Court said courts ran as normal yesterday.

Cabinet Office Minister Tessa Jowell said less than one in five PCSU members voted in favour of strike action.