Thousands of Metropolitan Police civilian staff will strike for two days next week over the imposition of pay cuts, the Public and Commercial Services union announced yesterday.

The 48-hour stoppage on February 12 and 13 will coincide with the next planned Tube strikes.

The unions have co-ordinated their action because while the industrial issues are separate "there are clear links in that the cuts to both essential services are being driven by the government's obsession with austerity."

A PCS spokesman told the Star: "As well as providing customer services the role of Tube staff is also to ensure the safety of the travelling public and on that they work very closely with their colleagues in the Met.

"Our union has a policy of trying to co-ordinate industrial action with other unions wherever possible, so when we have a dispute among a large group of our members in London - whose roles overlap with London Underground staff - it's natural that we would look to co-ordinate."

The union said the imposition of a below-inflation 1 per cent increase was in breach of an existing agreement.

As well as being angry about their pay, staff fear for their futures as the Met is considering privatising the work of about 4,000 civilian workers.

PCS general secretary Mark Serwotka said: "The Met Police is not short of money and does not have to ape the government's politically motivated pay policies that have fuelled the longest decline in wages on record."

London Assembly Labour group police and crime spokeswoman Joanne McCartney called for the workers to be listened to.

She said: "They are often some of the lowest-paid members of staff at the Met."