‘Hypocritical’ Royal Society of Arts faces its first strike in 270 years

Union anger after bosses' pay at arts charity rises 170% while staff are offered just 4%

Charity workers could walk out on strike for the first time in the 270-year history of the Royal Society of Arts (RSA) as a simmering row over pay, alleged union-busting and rising executive wages reaches boiling point.

Union members at the enlightenment charity, which once counted Karl Marx and Nelson Mandela as members, are being balloted for strike action by the Independent Workers Union of Great Britain (IWGB) over a below-inflation pay offer, with the result expected this week.