Up to 170,000 public sector workers in sectors such as health, education, police, transport, road maintenance and civil service will take part in a strike over pay.
Up to 170,000 public sector workers, including teachers, nurses, bus and train drivers, police officers and civil servants, are taking part in one of the largest strikes ever seen in Northern Ireland.
Northern Ireland Unions will come to a near standstill as workers from 16 different unions picket in protest demanding better pay and conditions.
Parades and rallies will be held across four counties, including towns and cities such as Belfast, Derry/Londonderry, Enniskillen and Omagh.
Schools will be closed, buses and trains will be suspended, medical services will be drastically reduced, and all but emergency measures are likely to be suspended.
As freezing temperatures persist across Northern Ireland, almost all non-motorway roads are clear of gravel and motorists are being warned not to drive unless absolutely necessary.
Secretary of State Chris Heaton-Harris said the strike would “cause disruption to people across Northern Ireland”.
So what’s behind this massive disruption?
Unions say Northern Ireland has fallen short of the pay rises their members have received in other parts of the UK in recent years, and the statistics appear to back that up.
For example, the starting salary for teachers in NI is £24,137, a far cry from £32,317 in Scotland, which is £30,742 in Wales and £30,000 in England.
Pay for nurses and civil servants similarly lags behind the rest of the UK.
Of course, Northern Ireland’s dysfunctional political situation bears much of the blame.
A seventh attempt to restore parliament and the executive at Stormont failed on Wednesday as the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) stubbornly refused to take part, citing post-Brexit trade concerns.
As it has been approximately two years since the decentralized government ceased to exist, ministries and agencies have said that they are unable to provide new salaries.
The British Government – in the form of Mr Heaton Harris – dangled a carrot worth 3.3 billion pounds The settlement of wage claims would involve around £600 million for the parties to return to work at Stormont.
But he insists he has no authority to release the funds unless executives return, a claim many angry workers simply don’t believe.
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He said: “We are extremely disappointed that the UK Government’s offer of significant funding to address these issues has not been accepted.”
“This package has been under consideration since before Christmas and will remain there, available to the next Northern Ireland Executive from day one.”
There is great dissatisfaction here with both local and national politicians. And that will be reflected in the freezing of picket lines in what is believed to be the largest strike in Northern Ireland’s history.