- The Washington Times - Tuesday, February 5, 2013

The European Union’s headquarters in Brussels was almost empty Tuesday. That’s because civil servants are on strike, pushing back proposals to cut their pay or benefits in the face of looming budget pressures.

United Press International reports that Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom are committed to passing austerity measures, which would likely trickle down to workers in the form of layoffs, pay freezes and pay cuts. Three unions, in response, have called for strikes.

The unions claim that if the cuts are enacted, “EU institutions would no longer be able to perform their tasks of designing, drawing up and implementing future policies,” according to UPI.

• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.

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