FabSwingers.com forum: Does striking make the government or the unions look bad?

By (user no longer on site) OP
over a year ago

So simple, we’ve got strikes left,right and centre.

Who is to blame? and who will come out of this better?

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

[Removed by poster at 08/12/22 22:41:39]

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

Well, the government aren't to blame directly if people's employers aren't paying them enough. The strikers certainly aren't either. (On a side note it makes you question this 'million jobs remain vacant' lie that gets parroted about).

If the employers are struggling with costs then they need do some creative restructuring and perhaps fire a few folk so as to pay the rest more, or eat into their profits to pay better.

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By *irtysnapperMan
over a year ago

Bromsgrove

"So simple, we’ve got strikes left,right and centre.

Who is to blame? and who will come out of this better?"

The government are to blame. No payrises for any public sector workers, having completely shafted the economy while pocketing millions for themselves and their mates. I predict riots.

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By *irldnCouple
over a year ago

Brighton

"Well, the government aren't to blame directly if people's employers aren't paying them enough. The strikers certainly aren't either. (On a side note it makes you question this 'million jobs remain vacant' lie that gets parroted about).

If the employers are struggling with costs then they need do some creative restructuring and perhaps fire a few folk so as to pay the rest more, or eat into their profits to pay better."

Except where the Govt is the employer right? So that’s the nurses, civil servants (inc border force), driving test examiners, ambulance/paramedics.

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By *eroy1000Man
over a year ago

milton keynes

"So simple, we’ve got strikes left,right and centre.

Who is to blame? and who will come out of this better?"

An article I read today suggests that although no one is looking good, it is Labour who could end up being the loser in all of this. I am not sure what Labour's official position on the strikes are as earlier this year I think their cabinet members were told not to go on the picket lines. The insinuation was that as Labour are closely linked to the union's, the public are linking them to the strikes and the related problems they cause especially this time of year. Apparently a poll shows a narrowing and people claiming it's due to the strikes. It is just one poll and Labour are still well ahead

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By *eavenNhellCouple
over a year ago

carrbrook stalybridge

If the employers are struggling with costs then they need do some creative restructuring and perhaps fire a few folk so as to pay the rest more, or eat into their profits to pay better."
in the case of the rail operating companies they are not loosing a penny on strike days govt are paying them millions all part of the plan .

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

Striking only achieves short term gains but in the long term, does more harm than good.

Ever heard of the Dagenham ladies?

Back in, I think it was the 60's, Ford Motor company employed a number of ladies, at their dagenham plant, working on producing interiors.

Those ladies were not being paid the same as their male counterparts.

So, they went on strike.

Fair play to them, they ended up getting equal pay, but it wasn't very long until Ford moved interior production abroad - and all those ladies found themselves out of work.

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By *abioMan
over a year ago

Newcastle and Gateshead

For example if TOCs offered RMT workers originally offered 3%…. But they eventually ended up settling at 11%

Are management asses for only offering 3% in the first place? …. So striking did help the workers however inconvenient it was!

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By *irldnCouple
over a year ago

Brighton

May have these figures wrong as heard on radio yesterday but in the 70s union membership in the private sector was around 50% with some trades being closed shops (not a member no job). Today union membership in private sector is down to 13%.

You often hear people who work in private sector complain or disagree that public sector workers (who are still far more unionised though nowhere near universally) should be able to strike. They often say “we can’t strike” and “if you don’t like it go get a better job”.

The irony in those two statements should be clear:

1) The workers in the private sector have increasingly allowed themselves to lose their protections and bargaining power.

2) If you are a nurse and want to be a nurse then what other job are you going to leave and get? Many public sector jobs do not have a comparable in the private sector and that whole argument misses the point on vocation and having a public service mentality.

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

"Except where the Govt is the employer right? So that’s the nurses, civil servants (inc border force), driving test examiners, ambulance/paramedics."

From an employer perspective of course.

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By *rFunBoyMan
over a year ago

Longridge

No, have you not noticed the blame them, not us culture starting.

A few years ago, Jeremy Hunt screwed over Nurses with a bad pay deal - as a Minister for Health.

Now, suddenly, pay negotiation is between Unions and the NHS - apparently government has never been involved with pay deals!!

Then, the last couple of months, Transport Secretary claiming train strikes are between employers and Unions and not for them to get involved

So, which is it?

Talk about washing your hands..

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By *cooby6969Man
over a year ago

Gosport

The gov get there inflation rises every year for doing jack shit the fuck the country like truss did then when mr/mrs ave who do harder work want an inflation rise the wont pay it get rid of the corrupt tories

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By *rFunBoyMan
over a year ago

Longridge

Every time Truss opened her mouth, it was either her Energy Price Guarantee where no household will pay more than £2500 for Energy, with the next sentence "bigger salaries and better pay".

Well, they now want the bigger salaries just as government wanted, to help survive the Mortgage interest rate hike of the government's causing.

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By *ove2pleaseseukMan
over a year ago

Hastings

Hope fully workers will get a deal close to benefits 9% to 10% or in time people will just be working for less and less.

Nurses do leave but just move to agencies costing the NHS more so its not the same as the private sector at all.

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By *ustintime69Man
over a year ago

Bristol

What always gets me is that some people who have been trained up by the NHS then get to a point where they decide they are worth more and get a job with an agency that then sells their services back to the NHS for vastly inflated cost - a doctor was paid £5k for one shift last week - and yet they can’t find money to train or pay nurses.

There’s too many scalpers in this country getting paid far too much for extorting money from us

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By *irldnCouple
over a year ago

Brighton

"What always gets me is that some people who have been trained up by the NHS then get to a point where they decide they are worth more and get a job with an agency that then sells their services back to the NHS for vastly inflated cost - a doctor was paid £5k for one shift last week - and yet they can’t find money to train or pay nurses.

There’s too many scalpers in this country getting paid far too much for extorting money from us

That is the big irony. By not paying better headline salaries, the public sector actually ends up paying more. However, those costs get reported on a different accounting line so ministers can point to salary/employment costs and say we have public sector pay restraint.

In addition, paying through the nose for “contingent labour” is considered favourable as you have no ongoing commitment or employment costs such as holiday pay, sick pay, training, maternity/paternity pay, employer pension contributions, redundancy and TUPE.

But that flexibility for the employer comes at a cost in terms of high day rates.

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By *rDiscretionXXXMan
over a year ago

Gilfach

"... a doctor was paid £5k for one shift last week ..."

You mean - an agency was paid £5k to supply a doctor. There's no way the actual doctor got that much.

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