MORE than 500 civil servants walked out of Government offices at

Meadowbank House in Edinburgh yesterday in protest at a decision to

force staff to compete for their own jobs against private sector bids.

It was announced yesterday to the union side at the Land Register

Department that Ministers decided on Friday to proceed with the first

competitive tendering exercise, which will cover 337 jobs in

reprographics, typing, and messenger services.

The National Union of Civil and Public Servants and the Civil and

Public Servants' Association called a meeting in the office car park and

members voted overwhelmingly not to return to work in the afternoon in

protest at the decision, which they said contradicted assurances given

on consultation.

Ms Sanjit Kaur, who chairs the NUCPS branch at the Land Register, said

consultants Touche Ross had been given the go-ahead to prepare the

specifications for the tendering process, with these 337 jobs only phase

one. ''Our experience is that very few in-house bids win, and when they

do they inevitably result in a worsening of pay and conditions for those

involved,'' she said.

Of the 1200 staff at the department 1000 are in the trade unions and

more than half of those attended the meeting. Ms Kaur pointed up at the

windows to those in personnel and finance who had not come out and

accused them of being short-sighted, as their turn would come next.

She said: ''Over one-third of Scottish Office departments identified

for competitive tendering were from here, so this is the fastest moving

department. We are at the sharp end.''

The CPSA's branch secretary, Mr Rab Devine, said Ministers had rubber

stamped the proposals (first leaked through the media last spring), and

yesterday's walk-out would mark the start of a campaign to resist the

process.