BOLTON tax office workers staged a one day protest today over a pay rise dispute and "unreasonable" working conditions.

They are in dispute with the Inland Revenue who have imposed a two per cent pay rise on workers and changed their working conditions.

The workers claim new staff coming in are expected to work weekends with no premium overtime and the lowest pay scale at £9,450 means they are often not able to keep staff, say workers on the picket line.

The workload has continually increased with new schemes, such as the working family tax credit scheme, but the pay rise is not reflected in this.

The inquiry office was closed to the public until 10am while the picket took place and will shut its doors again at 4pm.

Tax staff across Manchester staging the protest today are also objecting to changes which will see a private company take over debt collection. Most of the tax office's 240 staff are supporting the picket.

An Inland Revenue spokesman said: "The board has written to all staff and explained the position regarding the dispute."