Public Sector Strike Day

[beorhthelm]

Seems very moderate to me and my professional role is as part of Local Government management.

yes, 16% pay increase is very moderate. i suppose we can all pay a similarly moderate increase in council tax to contribute to this. wait, we dont need to because the NI and tax on the increase will pay for the rise itself. .

 

[DavidinSouthampton]

With my recent experiences with public sector workers at the council, DWP, job centre and HMRC I struggle to support this strike based on their extreme inefficiency, rudeness, shambolic organisation and complete lack of empathy. The public sector needs a massive top to bottom overhaul but of course the workers wouldn't stand for that.

Having a wife, two daughters and two daughters' partners all working in the public sector, wife as something very senior in education, no. 1 daughter as a reasonably senior local authority officer in South Wales, her partner for HMRC as a tax (VAT) inspector, no. 2 daughter as a doctor (qualified surgeon but now entering in to training as a GP) and her partner as a science teacher and head of sixth-form science in a school in a not very nice part of Coventry, I feel well qualified to say that you, sir, are talking out of your ass.

 

[Freddie Goodwin.]

Possibly

One of the problems is that the staff within each 'department' have a siege mentality and there is no sharing of information, processes, systems or even working practices. Each of those organisations I've listed asked me for virtually the same data ( in some cases multiple times ).

Very frustrating but it's not always the fault of staff. All the info is 'somewhere' in the system but due to data protection organisations are not allowed to share it and that often means between departments of the same organisation and centralising certain info in centres up north makes it even worse.

I used to, at a local office, know personally people who could help me with a whole range of issues, but not so now where I'd have to send to another office miles away in the hope of an eventual reply.

And as for call centres? Our one often tells people, after they have taken ages to get through, to 'write in'.

 

[yxee]

I fully support their choice to strike, but in the interests of equality I suppose I ought to also support a right for their employers to seek more reliable workers to replace the strikers. No union should have a monopoly on labour.

 

[Pretty pink fairy]

I fully support their choice to strike, but in the interests of equality I suppose I ought to also support a right for their employers to seek more reliable workers to replace the strikers. No union should have a monopoly on labour.

scab
regards
DR

 

[Freddie Goodwin.]

Hahaha , 'standing up for public services ' my a*se , If they're striking over pay and conditions or their pensions then good luck to tbem , but to spin tbe fairy story that they're 'standing up for public services' is an insult to peoples Intelligence .

HMRC staff have taken action to try and keep Enquiry Centres open. Of course, that failed and, as of 1st july they all closed. not that this will bother many, until they need tax or credits help and find that online or by phone doesn't work for them.

 

[Soulman]

I'd suggest it is you whom doesn't know what you're talking about. That statement wasn't just from my experience of the shambolic state of affairs around my benefits claims but also includes 20+ years of working in the private sector within the public sector. That includes working with the MOD, DVLA, DSA, Police, local government, central government, pseudo government organisations such as CAA and NATS, MI5, education and HMRC. But you carry on suggesting I have no experience of how the public sector works.

Same as WS, in fact i am at NATS now, and have worked alongside many of the departments that you mention. I work in the private sector alongside the public sector. Recently where i work they have cut the staff, the workers actually, whilst increasing the management, who are managing less workers. The recession in the Construction Industry started in 2007, the rate has slowly gone back to the same as 2004, and the Agencies get their slimy hands in on most big jobs, the parasites.
No holiday pay, sick pay, and no pay for two family funerals of late. I started a pension scheme in 1987, projected yearly payout in 2025 will be 2,100 a YEAR.
I must say that the management side in my trade is also top heavy, 4 management controlling 4/6 workers.
There is a tremendous lot of dead wood in the public sector, made up titles whilst the workers get shafted....the proper ones that is.

 

[Brighton Mod]

More like you are either mis informed or talking rubbish.

What is it with you, I personally know some people who did exactly that, you shouldn't be so niaive. There may be some highly principled people in the public sector, but like anything else, it has its liars and cheats, malingerers and sicknotes and its agitators.

I could also highlight the 'perk practice's that vanished from the private sector 25 years ago, but that's another issue.

 

[Superphil]

Sorry but this isn't true, (I work in a number of hospitals across the country). However, what is true, is that whilst there has been a 1% pay rise for staff. this is not a consolidated pay rise, and therefore could disappear next year.

Someone I know, who works in the NHS, told me today that she has not,and will not be getting a rise this year.

 

[Soulman]

Having a wife, two daughters and two daughters' partners all working in the public sector, wife as something very senior in education, no. 1 daughter as a reasonably senior local authority officer in South Wales, her partner for HMRC as a tax (VAT) inspector, no. 2 daughter as a doctor (qualified surgeon but now entering in to training as a GP) and her partner as a science teacher and head of sixth-form science in a school in a not very nice part of Coventry, I feel well qualified to say that you, sir, are talking out of your ass.

You are not a tad biased are you towards the public sector? i wouldn't blame you if you were.

 

[drew]

I do love the way in which the loony lefties jump on here and say it's the current governments fault for the problems we're in with the rich getting richer. I didn't see any evidence of the last Labour government curtailing the expansive nature of the rich getting richer. All they seemed to do was spend, spend, spend, and then sold the entire UK Gold reserves at an all time low. Smart move lefties.

You all know that when the loony left get back in, as they will next year, they will then place the UK dangerously back further into the red, whilst failing to plug any tax gaps that successive governments have failed to achieve over years of poor management. Greece anyone?

What ignorance! If GB sold the entire gold reserves, what is it that we have stockpiled in the vaults of the Bank of England! The last labour government reduced the national debt before being hit by the global recession. With regard to spend spend spend, we were spending money we were earning but then of course the bank led recession put paid to that! Whilst we are on the subject, why aren't you slating Cameron for not selling more gold in 2011 when it was at it's highest as the price has dropped by about a third since then!

I didn't realise YOU were on strike , I bet you work in the council offices in some sort of paper shuffling role , you strke me as the sort of bloke who does the job precisely because its an easier life than the private sector and are now throwing your toys out of tbe pram because you've got to justify your job.

Of course, there are many people in the private sector who pull people from burning buildings, hold their hand whilst they take their last breath in hospitals etc. .No doubt your own vocation is of equally high merit. Alternatively, you might just be in it for the money!

Surely the Public sector is a loose term,very wide and varied,i would imagine not every single area has or shares the same concerns?

I would not know as i have never worked within the public sector,but some areas i would imagine are very well staffed,sufficiently funded and do a good job,further they have staff that actually put in a shift and get on with the job in hand,other areas probably are under staffed under funded and have genuine cause for strike action..

Then there is the bandwagon jumpers,the lazy and can't be bothered types,the types that would not last 5 minutes in the private sector,perhaps it's these that have the loudest voices? I genuinely don't know,other than to say my missus will be coming home from work early today due to strike action & is not participating,she belongs to the get on with it type..

Me? i have a week off back to my 12 hour shifts 5-6 days a week,as of Monday..

The question raised by your post is which category are you suggesting most public sector workers fall under. i have to say, I would be very surprised if there are many areas of the public sector hat are well staffed. If there are, perhaps someone could identify them?

Was surprised to read this yesterday:-

"It follows criticism of the National Union of Teachers deciding to go out on strike after a 27 per cent turnout in a row over pay and pensions.
The ballot was also held in 2012, something the Prime Minister said was unacceptable."

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...-ahead-nationwide-walkouts.html#ixzz374A61yST

I know it's the Daily Mail (it came up in the google news feed) so probably not very reliable but if it's right, seems a bit wrong really.

What is wrong. The fact that it is only 27% or the that the vote was in 2012? The strike hasn't been declared illegal so what is wrong. The issues voted on remain the same.

So why is he not there, who's winning and losing here, the poster loses a days pay, the public miss a day of his service and the government/taxpayer saves a days pay. Do you know what the absentee rate is in the public sector? Tell the teachers to go on strike in August, they're all being manipulated by the union in some pseudo grievance, we all have issues in our working lives but we don't behave like this, it'll be another misfire again I feel.

So what is the absentee rate in the public sector compared to the private sector?

The private sector is always quicker to react to changes in the economic outlook than the public sector. To some point it is the nature of the beast so to speak, a big unwieldly organisation like NHS cannot change overnight. So when the recession hit people employed in private industry saw their wages stagnate far earlier than those in local government, they also saw industry shedding jobs at a far faster rate than could ever be achieved by a publicly funded body. The last 10 years have also seen the nigh on disappearance of fat pension schemes that are still being enjoyed by many in local authority employment.

None of this has been painless for anyone. But my point is this, the public sector takes far longer to make necessary savings and cuts and therefore the issues that need to be tackled take longer to be addressed, and as sure as night follows day we still have a budget deficit. Once that is eradicated higher pay rises and increased staffing can be considered. Even then teachers and firefighters will still fight against having to work longer, whereas others no longer have anything to fight against on this topic, the law has already been changed. In essence, the private sector was first in and is now first out of the recession, the public sector is, as ever, a few years behind.

In answer to what else can you do, there are plenty of options. Do you work for the income or are you a principled public servant. if you want to earn more money then the Public Sector may not be for you, have your conditions been changed, has your bonus been cut or hours. Do you still get paid sick leave that is allocated on a yearly basis, are there any dismissals in your sector for poor performance, lateness and absenteeism. If you're a principled public servant then carry on with what you are doing. That you are striking on a principle is very commendable, but you'll still pay the mortgage/rent, feed the family and go on holiday, not really much of a contribution is it. Would you strike for three months? would you survive this and would any of your public notice?
I sit on the outside of this and watched the last efforts and I see a lot of very good people being mugged off and mobilised by the unions, getting angry, defensive and unable to take personal responsibility for their own lives. Tomorrow, todays efforts will be forgotten and next week it will be irrelevant. Sorry, I wish you all the luck, but fear you have been used.[/QUOTE]

Jesus, as others have said, what a patronising post. Perhaps if everyone was in it just for the money as you seem to be, there would be no one to wipe your arse when you a decrepit old person in a failing body. Or to pull your sorry soul from a burning building or to scrape your remains from the road when some dickhead totals your car.

In answer to what else can you do, there are plenty of options. Do you work for the income or are you a principled public servant. if you want to earn more money then the Public Sector may not be for you, have your conditions been changed, has your bonus been cut or hours. Do you still get paid sick leave that is allocated on a yearly basis, are there any dismissals in your sector for poor performance, lateness and absenteeism. If you're a principled public servant then carry on with what you are doing. That you are striking on a principle is very commendable, but you'll still pay the mortgage/rent, feed the family and go on holiday, not really much of a contribution is it. Would you strike for three months? would you survive this and would any of your public notice?
I sit on the outside of this and watched the last efforts and I see a lot of very good people being mugged off and mobilised by the unions, getting angry, defensive and unable to take personal responsibility for their own lives. Tomorrow, todays efforts will be forgotten and next week it will be irrelevant. Sorry, I wish you all the luck, but fear you have been used.

God you are a patronising twerp.[/QUOTE]

Thought for a minute there you had switch sides but then realised your post had deleted the 'quote' from BMs post!!!!!

God you are a patronising twerp.

Ich denke nicht mein freunde, my opinion and observation are held personal. When criticised I don't take things personally and have not been wound up by highly paid union bosses whose only raison d'etre is to get more members to keep themselves in employ. Its pensions, its pay, its conditions, its Gove, the government, no responsibility and not one issue that you can hang your hat on, not one issue that makes an individual say, I can't take anymore of this I'm off. Some need to take a step back and look at this from the outside.

Sorry you feel that way.[/QUOTE]

Their not held personal because you aired them on a public forum. There are plenty of issues or would you prefer them to hold a separate strike for each point. Pay, pensions, staffing, retirement etc etc.

But they are buying the property FROM someone who is then using the money for something else. The individual no longer has the money but it is still in circulation.

You cannot "stockpile" money unless you take the cash and physically put it somewhere. Otherwise you are spending it, investing it or putting it somewhere where someone else is doing the same for their benefit.

If you convert your cash into any asset... property, art, jewelry, whatever.... You had to buy it from someone so the money remains in circulation.

This is one of the basic principles of Economics which is often ignored, glossed over or misrepresented for political/ideological reasons. But that doesn't mean its not true!

If you buy overseas property then the money has gone from our economy unless the person who sold the house then buys one in this country!

Teachers should be fined for going on strike like we are for taking our kids on holiday in term time

The fines are a government policy.

I'd suggest it is you whom doesn't know what you're talking about. That statement wasn't just from my experience of the shambolic state of affairs around my benefits claims but also includes 20+ years of working in the private sector within the public sector. That includes working with the MOD, DVLA, DSA, Police, local government, central government, pseudo government organisations such as CAA and NATS, MI5, education and HMRC. But you carry on suggesting I have no experience of how the public sector works.

Out of interest, what line are you in seeing as you have been involved in a diverse number of depts.

I'm not an advocate of you're lucky to have a job, your words not mine. So tell me whats next, whats around the corner? What do the strikers hope to gain from today? What are they caving in to? Many in the private sector lost their jobs at the onset of the financial problems whilst others had their hours cut and overtime slashed. What did these people do, they considered their options and moved on with their life. If the government was saying to teachers, well to bring you in line with other public sector workers you can only have 28 days holiday then I could understand, but this isn't the case. if there was a shortage of applicants seeking to enter the teaching profession I could also see the point, but this also isn't the case. A day of inaction that has inconvenience some people, annoyed others and cost some union members a days pay.
I genuinely see those on strike in some wider political game, canon fodder as the unions forward some vague, general protest which will achieve little or nothing, this sort of behaviour is anachronistic.

You are thick, that's the only conclusion I can draw from your post. A large amount of people who lost jobs, ended up taking part time work which doesn't pay the all the bills. According to the NAO, there are record numbers of people in part time work who are actually looking for or need full time work. That, by any stretch of the imagination, is not getting on with their lives, that is having to make do with what is on offer and struggling. You mention overtime slashed which would suggest paid overtime. My wife is on a contract as a nurse/manager of 37 1/2 hours a week. She's at work for probably closer to 50 hours a week, the extra not being paid. Each year she loses a number of her holiday allowance due to work commitments.

I've only ever worked in the private sector and know there are equally many people in that category that are lazy and just work the minimum just as many of the posters on here suggest that public sector workers do.



With regard to the Government's position with regard to austerity and the national debt, I could solve the problem instantly. If everyone who says 'I support the fundamental right to strike but 'insert reason why strike is wrong as it inconveniences me' gives me £1 then I'll donate that to the treasury and problem solved!!!

 

[DavidinSouthampton]

You are not a tad biased are you towards the public sector? i wouldn't blame you if you were.

You noticed..........

 

[Westdene Seagull]

Out of interest, what line are you in seeing as you have been involved in a diverse number of depts.

At the high level you would call it IT - more specifically data security / management and business integration / consultancy.

 

[Brighton Mod]

What ignorance! If GB sold the entire gold reserves, what is it that we have stockpiled in the vaults of the Bank of England! The last labour government reduced the national debt before being hit by the global recession. With regard to spend spend spend, we were spending money we were earning but then of course the bank led recession put paid to that! Whilst we are on the subject, why aren't you slating Cameron for not selling more gold in 2011 when it was at it's highest as the price has dropped by about a third since then!



Of course, there are many people in the private sector who pull people from burning buildings, hold their hand whilst they take their last breath in hospitals etc. .No doubt your own vocation is of equally high merit. Alternatively, you might just be in it for the money!



The question raised by your post is which category are you suggesting most public sector workers fall under. i have to say, I would be very surprised if there are many areas of the public sector hat are well staffed. If there are, perhaps someone could identify them?



What is wrong. The fact that it is only 27% or the that the vote was in 2012? The strike hasn't been declared illegal so what is wrong. The issues voted on remain the same.



So what is the absentee rate in the public sector compared to the private sector?





In answer to what else can you do, there are plenty of options. Do you work for the income or are you a principled public servant. if you want to earn more money then the Public Sector may not be for you, have your conditions been changed, has your bonus been cut or hours. Do you still get paid sick leave that is allocated on a yearly basis, are there any dismissals in your sector for poor performance, lateness and absenteeism. If you're a principled public servant then carry on with what you are doing. That you are striking on a principle is very commendable, but you'll still pay the mortgage/rent, feed the family and go on holiday, not really much of a contribution is it. Would you strike for three months? would you survive this and would any of your public notice?
I sit on the outside of this and watched the last efforts and I see a lot of very good people being mugged off and mobilised by the unions, getting angry, defensive and unable to take personal responsibility for their own lives. Tomorrow, todays efforts will be forgotten and next week it will be irrelevant. Sorry, I wish you all the luck, but fear you have been used.

Jesus, as others have said, what a patronising post. Perhaps if everyone was in it just for the money as you seem to be, there would be no one to wipe your arse when you a decrepit old person in a failing body. Or to pull your sorry soul from a burning building or to scrape your remains from the road when some dickhead totals your car.



God you are a patronising twerp.[/QUOTE]

Thought for a minute there you had switch sides but then realised your post had deleted the 'quote' from BMs post!!!!!



Ich denke nicht mein freunde, my opinion and observation are held personal. When criticised I don't take things personally and have not been wound up by highly paid union bosses whose only raison d'etre is to get more members to keep themselves in employ. Its pensions, its pay, its conditions, its Gove, the government, no responsibility and not one issue that you can hang your hat on, not one issue that makes an individual say, I can't take anymore of this I'm off. Some need to take a step back and look at this from the outside.

Sorry you feel that way.[/QUOTE]

Their not held personal because you aired them on a public forum. There are plenty of issues or would you prefer them to hold a separate strike for each point. Pay, pensions, staffing, retirement etc etc.



If you buy overseas property then the money has gone from our economy unless the person who sold the house then buys one in this country!



The fines are a government policy.



Out of interest, what line are you in seeing as you have been involved in a diverse number of depts.



You are thick, that's the only conclusion I can draw from your post. A large amount of people who lost jobs, ended up taking part time work which doesn't pay the all the bills. According to the NAO, there are record numbers of people in part time work who are actually looking for or need full time work. That, by any stretch of the imagination, is not getting on with their lives, that is having to make do with what is on offer and struggling. You mention overtime slashed which would suggest paid overtime. My wife is on a contract as a nurse/manager of 37 1/2 hours a week. She's at work for probably closer to 50 hours a week, the extra not being paid. Each year she loses a number of her holiday allowance due to work commitments.

I've only ever worked in the private sector and know there are equally many people in that category that are lazy and just work the minimum just as many of the posters on here suggest that public sector workers do.



With regard to the Government's position with regard to austerity and the national debt, I could solve the problem instantly. If everyone who says 'I support the fundamental right to strike but 'insert reason why strike is wrong as it inconveniences me' gives me £1 then I'll donate that to the treasury and problem solved!!![/QUOTE]

Hey Drew, take a chill pill, your gonna have a stroke at this rate. Your ignorance of me and what I do shines through very clearly here. You make assumptions of me and don't know me. I make a general comment about the strike. Do you contribute to charity, give your spare time as a school governor, employ over 100 people, have been decorated by your country?
Your a silly man to react in the way you have to someone who has a contra opinion to you. As I said earlier, I feel the strikers have been mugged off and you appear to have bought into that with such a reaction.

 

[red star portslade]

Always amazes me that when these issues come up all the private sector types whinge on about how good Public Sector Working conditions are. Pay, pensions and how secure their jobs are. If they are so good why don't you go join them then? Learn to become a Teacher if you want more holidays, train to be a Firefighter if you want to risk your life for some pisshead who's left their chip pan on and fallen asleep, or be a bin man in all weathers to pick other peoples shit up for 40 odd years.

Easy street, the Public sector.

 

[drew]

Hey Drew, take a chill pill, your gonna have a stroke at this rate. Your ignorance of me and what I do shines through very clearly here. You make assumptions of me and don't know me. I make a general comment about the strike. Do you contribute to charity, give your spare time as a school governor, employ over 100 people, have been decorated by your country?
Your a silly man to react in the way you have to someone who has a contra opinion to you. As I said earlier, I feel the strikers have been mugged off and you appear to have bought into that with such a reaction.

Jesus, give the guy a medal! Oops, someone already has.

You're right, I don't know you, just as you don't know every public sector worker but you are happy to suggest you believe they have all been 'mugged off' by the unions rather than that they all have their own opinions. Some would argue that those on the other side of the coin have been mugged off by the government who are doing an excellent job of divide and conquer.

Each to their own I suppose.

 

[Brighton Mod]

Hey Drew, take a chill pill, your gonna have a stroke at this rate. Your ignorance of me and what I do shines through very clearly here. You make assumptions of me and don't know me. I make a general comment about the strike. Do you contribute to charity, give your spare time as a school governor, employ over 100 people, have been decorated by your country?
Your a silly man to react in the way you have to someone who has a contra opinion to you. As I said earlier, I feel the strikers have been mugged off and you appear to have bought into that with such a reaction.

Jesus, give the guy a medal! Oops, someone already has.

You're right, I don't know you, just as you don't know every public sector worker but you are happy to suggest you believe they have all been 'mugged off' by the unions rather than that they all have their own opinions. Some would argue that those on the other side of the coin have been mugged off by the government who are doing an excellent job of divide and conquer.

Each to their own I suppose.[/QUOTE]

Drew, we're all mugged off by successive governments, havn't you worked that one out yet. Every government wants the public sector as cheaply as possible. Every government wants to tax us, send our sons and daughters to war, encourage the charitable sector whilst giving us little soundbites on the television and radio. My motives in life are altruistic and I give my time freely and without seeking a return.
You havn't answered any question thoughtfully but have fired off after a day of action. You have a problem listening to anyones opinion without being rude and spiteful. Someones got your mind and that's a dangerous place to be, you sound radicalised to me?

 

[Captain Sensible]

I'm not an advocate of you're lucky to have a job, your words not mine. So tell me whats next, whats around the corner? What do the strikers hope to gain from today? What are they caving in to? Many in the private sector lost their jobs at the onset of the financial problems whilst others had their hours cut and overtime slashed. What did these people do, they considered their options and moved on with their life. If the government was saying to teachers, well to bring you in line with other public sector workers you can only have 28 days holiday then I could understand, but this isn't the case. if there was a shortage of applicants seeking to enter the teaching profession I could also see the point, but this also isn't the case. A day of inaction that has inconvenience some people, annoyed others and cost some union members a days pay.
I genuinely see those on strike in some wider political game, canon fodder as the unions forward some vague, general protest which will achieve little or nothing, this sort of behaviour is anachronistic.

Typical rhetoric of those that either don't understand, or are to ignorant to. Are you suggesting that thousands of public sector workers are stupid and are just blindly following some militant union? That has been the jist of your posts. It is achieving something, its in the news, we are talking about it. Many have been inconvenienced today by these strike yet you I suppose would say the Unions are to blame. I would say the government is to blame by making hard working people feel they have ABSOLUTELY NO ALTERNATIVE than to legally withdraw their Labour. I hope they get their 1.5% or whatever they want. I have seen many strikes over the years and have been indirectly involved in 2 very high profile ones. I can tell you, whilst the bosses claimed victory and said they got what they wanted..(maybe they did as I still to this day don't know what their REAL actual goal was), the employees certainly rightfully got the pay they were owed and future legal guarantees regarding job security. So in the Press, it seemed the Bosses won, I can tell you they (employees) feel they won. The real reasons for strike have to be legally very very accurate or they can be challenged and subject to legal injunction. So quite often the battle ground and reasons you hear in the media, are not often the actual reasons that people are striking, it could be something which is leading to something, the thin end of the wedge as I said earlier.

 

[Brighton Mod]

Typical rhetoric of those that either don't understand, or are to ignorant to. Are you suggesting that thousands of public sector workers are stupid and are just blindly following some militant union? That has been the jist of your posts. It is achieving something, its in the news, we are talking about it. Many have been inconvenienced today by these strike yet you I suppose would say the Unions are to blame. I would say the government is to blame by making hard working people feel they have ABSOLUTELY NO ALTERNATIVE than to legally withdraw their Labour. I hope they get their 1.5% or whatever they want. I have seen many strikes over the years and have been indirectly involved in 2 very high profile ones. I can tell you, whilst the bosses claimed victory and said they got what they wanted..(maybe they did as I still to this day don't know what their REAL actual goal was), the employees certainly rightfully got the pay we were owed and future legal guarantees regarding job security. So in the Press, it seemed the Bosses won, I can tell you they feel they won. The real reasons for strike have to be legally very very accurate or they can be challenged and subject to legal injunction. So quite often the battle ground and reasons you hear in the media, are not often the actual reasons that people are striking, it could be something which is leading to something, the thin end of the wedge as I said earlier.

I don't trust the media to tell anything near the truth and as such don't read a newspaper or watch television news. Win, lose its of no consequence to a great majority of the population, but this is all more complicated than your black white portrayal. I don't trust governments, unions, the press, the oil companies, energy companies, banks, insurance companies, supermarkets and politicians. I gave my opinion that I felt you were being mugged off, because after any previous strikes that have taken place what gains have been made by the strikers?

 

[Soulman]

Always amazes me that when these issues come up all the private sector types whinge on about how good Public Sector Working conditions are. Pay, pensions and how secure their jobs are. If they are so good why don't you go join them then? Learn to become a Teacher if you want more holidays, train to be a Firefighter if you want to risk your life for some pisshead who's left their chip pan on and fallen asleep, or be a bin man in all weathers to pick other peoples shit up for 40 odd years.

Easy street, the Public sector.

" all the private sector types whinge"
Who's whinging, it's the Public sector that are out on strike, suppose they could also change to the Private Sector as well eh.