MET Office staff forecast stormy weather ahead yesterday if the government failed to act to settle a long-running dispute over pay.

The workers’ union Prospect said that its Met Office members would take the “extremely rare” step of walking out next week in protest at the government’s pay policy, which it says is widening wage gaps compared with the public sector.

Prospect also warned that the government’s imposition of low pay rises was also restricting the Met Office’s ability to close the gender pay gap.

“Prospect members do not take this action lightly,” said Prospect negotiator Helen ­Stevens.

“They are loyal and committed to their work but they believe that the current pay policy is damaging the Met Office and its ability to serve its customers.

The Met Office modernised its pay system in 2009, but Prospect said that the system had never been allowed to work, leading to discrimination against women and difficulty recruiting specialist staff.

“The pay problems at the Met Office would not cost the taxpayer a penny extra to resolve,” said Ms Stevens.

“Prospect is simply calling on the government to give the Met Office the freedom to manage its own paybill.”

After five years of demoralising pay restraint, Met Office managers and specialists will take strike action on Wednesday February 24.

Prospect members will also lobby Parliament, put their case to their MPs and mount picket lines in a bid to force the Tories to grant the Met Office more freedom.

Met Office operations director Steve Noyes admitted that “some disruption to services is possible.”