Almost half of Charity Commission employees were among public sector workers on strike yesterday as members of the Public and Commercial Services Union walked out over the public sector pay freeze.

A total of 139 out of the Charity Commission’s 298 employees walked out yesterday, resulting in the closure of its Contact Centre, based in Liverpool, which is usually open from 9am until midday.

In the Commission’s Liverpool offices, 91 out of 137 employees were on strike, while its London offices saw 14 out of 68 employees strike.

In Taunton, 27 of 58 employees took part in the strike, and in Newport all but one of its eight employees went on strike.

PCS said that the latest figures on civil service pay show that median earnings are £2,000 below what they should be if pay had kept pace with inflation. It said that the focus of yesterday’s strikes is pay, with wages frozen for two years after 2010 and subsequently capped at 1 per cent. The union has said that tens of thousands of public sector staff went on strike, causing widespread disruption across government departments.

Mark Serwotka, PCS general secretary, said: "While politicians of all parties repeat the lie that there is no money around, the super-rich are being rewarded with tax cuts and tens of billions of pounds a year is stolen from our public finances through tax evasion.

"We are on strike this week and marching next Saturday to bring an end to pay cuts that have slashed the living standards of public servants and their families, and to demand investment in our economy so we can see a recovery for all instead of just the very wealthy."

The Charity Commission said it would not comment further on the impact of yesterday’s strikes, and said it is not aware of any future PCS strike plans.