Benefits Agency staff across the region joined a national two-day strike over safety.

Workers in Trowbridge and Chippenham protested after a Government department proposed to remove protective glass partitions.

Gill Cooper, Trowbridge spokesman for the Public and Commercial Services Union, said: "The Government wants to create a new environment and give everyone a work-focus interview, which we think is a good idea.

"But it also wants to abolish the glass screens, which we feel would be a mistake as people can get angry and behave irrationally, particularly when we make a decision about a claim they don't like."

In January, Holt security guard, David Smith, was stabbed with a hypodermic needle at the social security offices in Polebarn Road.

The Department for Work and Pensions says the new-style offices, which will include JobCentres, will make customers feel less angry.

A spokesman said: "There will be safety measures in place such as CCTV cameras and alarms which we think will make staff feel safer."

District manager of the JobCentre service in Chippenham, Nick Browning, said: "It's about providing a new environment. We are not expecting people to carry out exactly the same work as before and there will be screened-off areas in some offices."

A spokesman for the Department of Work and Pensions said: "The union is planning a major return to work on Friday, keeping out on strike just a tiny minority.

"Let's be clear, this is a futile dispute that is damaging staff and customers and has already cost the union more than £3million.''