French and backbone, now there's two words you don't normally hear in the same sentence
National Rail Strike
- Thread starter boroboy6872
- Start date
MolteniArcore
Well-known member
Did the French hurt your feelings once? You seem to dislike them.
Don't mind them on the whole apart from Don't think striking works.
Doesn't give a good message to younger ones.
If teachers follow which they probably will, i really think that it is wrong.
changingman
Well-known member
What is the message we should be giving to younger ones? Knuckle down no matter how sh*t life/your job/prospects are? Genuinely intrigued.
Littlejimmy
Well-known member
Striking by unions and the power to withdraw labour collectively has only given us many rights such as, but not limited to:
- Holidays (paid)
- sick pay
- maternity and paternity pay
- weekends
- minimum wage
Apart from that, what have the Unions done for us?
Billy69_uk
Well-known member
If striking doesnt work how come this Government is absolutely cacking itself then?
What do you suggest RMT members or teachers or nurses etc do when their wages are diminishing in real terms every day, and corporate profits increasing and public sector funding is reduced? draft a strongly worded email to their MP?
I am waiting for the good old line "well if they don't like it they can go get a job elsewhere"
They are trying to push through legislation which would allow untrained and uncertified contractors to fill in for striking workers sounds like a recipe for disaster for the public to me.
Where did all the public money go that was paid to the operators during covid? to the staff ? or to pay shareholder dividends?
For far too many generations we have been fed the line from different flavours of this government that Unions and workers unreasonable demands have been the driving force behind the demise of the Uk coal, Steel, Shipbuilding, car and rail industries, and many many more, when the truth of the matter is that the government seeks to plunder and sell of publicly owned resources to their mates and benefactors on the cheap.
Make no mistake, this government would love everyone to be furious with the RMT workers taking action, just like they have been trying to do with asylum seekers, those in working poverty, Johnny Foreigner, so we are all so enraged we dont see the pi$$ poor attempt at a slight of hand magic trick where we all end up getting worse and worse off, whilst under the illusion we are levelling up or building back better or whatever cack they are feeding the public.
Warwickboro
Well-known member
I have a love hate relationship with unions, they have bought us so much as mentioned. Holiday, employment rights etc. But the teaching unions (my wife is a teacher btw) are asking for 12%! I think that's a tad ott. I also think the unions have recognised that we have a weak incompetent government in a very weak position and they are exploiting that just as much as Boris is exploiting us! The issue is if millions of workers in the public sector all get 10% plus, inflation goes up further still and private sector workers get screwed, so something in the middle may be more appropriate, in general I'm on the workers side, but I just hope they keep within reality, however I acknowledge this will also be a negotiating position on their part.
MolteniArcore
Well-known member
I suppose we will see. Currently the RMT have received no pay offer - let's see how the striking changes that.
h_m_boro
Well-known member
My experience of Unions has not been particularly good, but this has generally been at branch level where the union reps (not all of them) did ...errrm.....okay.
Second off last act as a union member was Angela Raynor telling us that ".....it's the best deal you are going to get, so you will have to take it" shortly before our TUPE to Carillion where in 3 years just under a hundred staff became about 25-30. Well.....didn't see that coming
Thanks Ang
Second off last act as a union member was Angela Raynor telling us that ".....it's the best deal you are going to get, so you will have to take it" shortly before our TUPE to Carillion where in 3 years just under a hundred staff became about 25-30. Well.....didn't see that coming
Thanks Ang
Laughing
Well-known member
I think you'll find Billy that the government are loving the rail strike, or starmers rail strike as they are referring to it as. It gives them some ammunition to throw at Labour. It shouldn't, but does.
Warwickboro
Well-known member
Very true, it plays into the narrative of "taking us back to the 70s", I actually think this is exactly what they want
FabioPorkpie
Well-known member
As foolish as many of the electorate have proven themselves to be, I don’t think anybody is actually suggesting/thinking Labour are the ones taking us back to the 70s.
It’s so preposterous that it doesn’t even merit discussion as to whether the Tories think this line of attack may be successful for them.
Other than shills and bots, nobody thinks Labour shoulder any responsibility for this.
This is entirely a dispute between a Union and a Conservative Government ran organisation.
The government want it so they can pit worker against worker, feed off the division and enjoy the distraction it provides from some of their bigger scandals that absolutely merit further scrutiny and are falling down the news order as a result of the strikes ( eg trying to fiddle his tart into a 100 k job, then interfering in a free press by censoring the media from reporting on it.)
Even the government don’t think folk are stupid enough that they can pin this one on Labour.
asredastheycome
Well-known member
Ask for 12% maybe get 7%. Ask for 7 % they will offer them 3 or 4%. It's a starting point open to negotiation.
Teachers shouldn't be allowed to strike, you keep a child off school, you get fined, fine them for children missing out on education.
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Billy69_uk
Well-known member
maybe the unions want their members to have a slice of the very high double or triple digit pay increases seen by CEO's in both the private and public sector in the last 3 or 4 years?
"Chief executives in the UK are on average 759 per cent more than their employees, making the wage gap in Britain the biggest in all major economies.
Business leaders in the UK also get paid more than anywhere else in the world, after the United States.
On average, CEOs are paid £300,312, whereas the median employee pay is £34,943, creating a wage gap of 759 per cent.
Only in Greece the difference was higher, with Italy, Germany and France rounding out the top five countries, with wage gaps of 703 per cent, 622 per cent and 604 per cent respectively, according to data from careers board Lensa, shared with City A.M. this afternoon."
https://www.cityam.com/ceos-in-uk-a...hiefs-make-more-than-anywhere-else-in-europe/
See above comments. Let's make it a race to the bottom then eh?
Billy69_uk
Well-known member
LaPennaBianca
Well-known member
Teachers working conditions are children's learning conditions.
And just as I'd not like a disgruntled track safety specialist working on the rail network, I'd not like a disgruntled teacher.
Paintolerance
Well-known member
Inflation does not necessarily go up further. Inflation in this instance is not being driven by wage rises. Just because people receive an inflationary pay rise to enable them to pay for food, fuel and utilities going through the roof does not drive further price increases.
Of course, that's the narrative our delightful government want us to believe.
Over a decade and more, public sector workers have been subject to huge real pay cuts vs inflation. They are due to claw some of that back
Assume this was put to get a bite so I'll give you one....why shouldn't teachers be allowed to strike? I've got some young staff who've started at my place who due to the increase in costs are struggling to get into work due to lack of fuel and are having to try and car share everywhere.
As said above the issue isn't with the public or private sector it's about wages not moving- some teaching staff are 20% down in real terms since 2010 when the Tories came into power, I'd say a 12% increase when inflation is moving at almost the same rate is more than fair.