Public sector strikes on Wednesday

[NAILTRAIL96]

What none of you are grasping is that things have changed and the old way (whatever the rights and wrongs of publuc sector salaries and pensions) isn't sustainable - there just isn't enough money in the bank. Sometimes shit happens and there isn't a happy ending. I can accept that and get on with it - why can't you?

Sad but true, and striking, much like war and the X factor are man made, destructive and totally unnessesary.

 

[marky2484]

Software developers, eh. Not " Desk Jockeys" at all. Oh no. Positively Indiana Jones.

 

[Rumble]

I'll try and illustrate the real world with an example. A couple of years ago a friend of mine was in a graduate engineering role. The small company he was with was experiencing trouble and asked him to take a pay cut of several thousand pounds. Of course he didn't like it, but he accepted, knowing full well that in the employment market, with a surplus of people with his skills and at his level, he was lucky to have a job anyway. The company survuived, he's still with them and is recovering his salary as they can afford it.

Of course, he could have stuck to his guns, pointed to his contract and continued to pick up his original salary for a couple of months more until the company went under.

Now try telling that story again, but substitute "small company" for "heavily indebted, deeply troubled country" and "graduate engineer" for "unskilled administrator/cleaner/immigration form filler outer" etc.

I know there are many worthy, and some underpaid, people in the public sector. I would never belitte the contribution of the (front-line) emergency services. Unfortunately, it's all the much-more-easily-replaceable people that constitute the waste of resources. And it's those people who should be embarrassed and ashamed about kicking up a fuss.

 

[marky2484]

"How do we suppose the defict came about then."

Alright, I confess, it was down to me. After 25 years of doing a difficult, unpleasant and occasionally dangerous job , I had risen to the dizzy heights of 25k per year. My gold plated pension had already swelled to £6750 at age 60. Yep. It's a fair cop. It was me. :roll:

But please, after bunging billions at the hyper efficient bankers, feel free to feck me over. After all , I am a non productive enemy of enterprise.

 

[Rumble]

Software developers, eh. Not " Desk Jockeys" at all. Oh no. Positively Indiana Jones.

Not that it's relevant, but I'm not a software developer, I don't even work in IT, my roles have just touched on the indsutry. What I can do (but of course I'm not going to on the internet) is produce a spreadsheet for every job I've had showing the cost of employing me (not just salary), the contribution I've made (financial and otherwise) and how much money I've made the company I work for. Can you say the same? Can everyone in the public sector prove their worth?

 

[Neil]

What none of you are grasping is that things have changed and the old way (whatever the rights and wrongs of publuc sector salaries and pensions) isn't sustainable - there just isn't enough money in the bank. Sometimes shit happens and there isn't a happy ending. I can accept that and get on with it - why can't you?

Sad but true, and striking, much like war and the X factor are man made, destructive and totally unnessesary.

The real problem with this issue, is that both sides claim each other's position as unfair - and the problem with that is that there's some degree of truth to both perspectives.

That doesn't lend itself well to resolution, as the government seem resolute in fostering some degree of ambiguity, FUD, and propaganda (and I'm not of the view that Labour would play this much differently) and being pragmatic and reasonable is hardly going to strengthen the unions' positions.

And as always, this will be played out in the largely ignorant court of public opinion.

edit: and often there's a significant degree of nimbyism to many objections to strikes - perspective is rarer than a rare thing, most seem wrapped up in some hypocritical sense of self-interest with absolutely no shred of mutuality or equity in anybody else having self-interest. All the time, these people seem blisfully ignorant of the irony of their standpoint.

 

[marky2484]

Can everyone in the private sector prove their worth? Everyone?

No.

We all love the frontline emergency services. Of course. I happen to think teachers do a pretty vital job ,too. And "immigration form fillers" But of course, what they do cant be entered on a spreadsheet. So it doesn't count. Careful, your contempt is showing, again.

 

[Rumble]

Do I have contempt for the people in unskilled jobs who expect better than average packages and the taxpayer to fund it with no regard for the reality of the national and international financial crisis - hell yes I do!So should you.

Here's an idea for people who want more money. Get a job that pays more. It might mean you have to invest in some education or training, it might mean you work harder, or longer, or take less holidays. And if you find that you can't get that job that pays more - guess what? You've found your level and in the current climate - you're not worth any more.

 

[Neil]

Do I have contempt for the people in unskilled jobs who expect better than average packages and the taxpayer to fund it with no regard for the reality of the national and international financial crisis - hell yes I do!So should you.

Here's an idea for people who want more money. Get a job that pays more. It might mean you have to invest in some education or training, it might mean you work harder, or longer, or take less holidays. And if you find that you can't get that job that pays more - guess what? You've found your level and in the current climate - you're not worth any more.

A few pages back, you were saying you can't afford the contributions to a decent pension.

So from an unpartisan persective, in this debate, I'm going to say right back atcha with your own advice: physician, heal thyself.

 

[Rumble]

I started a new job 2 weeks ago. Before accepting I considered the long term prospects and what it means for my financies (and retirement, if anyone of my age is ever going to retire...)