Us worker ants often draw comfort that there is someone out there fighting our corner, although some of us are a tad more cynical, the concept that we're "all in this together" when facing years of bleak economic performance, rarely holds up when we see, the rich get richer, like crooks, politicians, bankers, chief execs and union bosses.
What chance a politician, banker, chief exec and now union bosses, seeing things from our perspective, anyway surely there must be someone who understands, how to get along on modest incomes, well maybe.
How about Britain's union bosses, well maybe not, if Taxpayers Alliance "Trade Union Rich List" figures are anything to go on, take as an example, Derek Simpson of Unite, who trousered £510,659 or Dave Prentis of Unison on £131,496 admittedly the pay when compared to say local authority Fat Cats doesn't seem unreasonable, but I cannot help thinking it would be an idea for union leaders to have similar pay levels to their members something which ought to apply to the majority of members of Parliament .
Wouldn't it be marvelous if for instance, the next time a union boss went into negotiations for their members, they were, as close to the edge, as those they represent. As I type it's certainly true that union bosses are lining up strike action to protect their members, they'll be only too willing to fight tooth and nail with members taking the hit by losing pay and or jobs.
The one thing that overwhelms me is that unions, could act in a responsible/realistic way, as occurs in the commercial world, moneys short contractors/suppliers take a hit, but keep their livelihoods, in the public sector additional jobs are created, in the good times and shrink in the bad and unions bosses instead of being unrealistically greedy on behalf of members, they could probably cut deals where members take a small cut in income, saving jobs and distress and of course we save those "front-line services" we here so much about.
Just's imagine if pay for MP's was linked tightly, perhaps 1 ½ times the pay of manual workers (it is tough to sit on you bottom and spout bollix), maybe the country would be a better place and maybe MP's would not have been so complicit, in allowing industry to have replaced British workers with easily exploited East Europoeans.
Wouldn't it be marvelous if for instance, the next time a union boss went into negotiations for their members, they were, as close to the edge, as those they represent. As I type it's certainly true that union bosses are lining up strike action to protect their members, they'll be only too willing to fight tooth and nail with members taking the hit by losing pay and or jobs.
The one thing that overwhelms me is that unions, could act in a responsible/realistic way, as occurs in the commercial world, moneys short contractors/suppliers take a hit, but keep their livelihoods, in the public sector additional jobs are created, in the good times and shrink in the bad and unions bosses instead of being unrealistically greedy on behalf of members, they could probably cut deals where members take a small cut in income, saving jobs and distress and of course we save those "front-line services" we here so much about.
Just's imagine if pay for MP's was linked tightly, perhaps 1 ½ times the pay of manual workers (it is tough to sit on you bottom and spout bollix), maybe the country would be a better place and maybe MP's would not have been so complicit, in allowing industry to have replaced British workers with easily exploited East Europoeans.
" but I cannot help thinking it would be an idea for union leaders to have similar pay levels to their members something which ought to apply to the majority of members of Parliament ."
ReplyDeleteDoes that make it right that the boss of the footballers' union (PFA) is only paid £1 million per year?
And what about linking the pay of the bosses of companies like M&S and Network Rail to the pay of the lowest paid worker. Something the controlling Green Party are looking looking at with the pay of bosses of Brighton council.
The point is I suppose that MP's are so remote from the real world as are most bosses like union bosses to have a clue about the implications of their actions.
ReplyDeleteDuring the MP's expenses scandal it was quite disgusting to see crooked mp's get away with fraud, and sickening to thing that many are still in office.
Many union leaders become the very personification of Animal Farm, far removed from the rank and file they are supposed to represent. Regularly we read of the likes of McCluskey having his champagne luncheons whilst Scargill still demands his grace and favour apartment in the Barbican that his comparatively small union can now no longer really afford.
ReplyDeleteGreat on militancy and calling their members out but do they themselves have to live on strike pay. No way, and with many they are not really interested in the members cause but more in making political statements.
Relics of a bygone struggle, the world would now be a better place without them. Like the old feudal system and the upstairs/downstairs
world of Victorian Britain, they should now be confined to history.
Nobody is fighting our corner, we need to do it ourselves. Nothing will change until the great unwashed remove their head from the sand and begin fighting their own corner.
ReplyDeleteThe state of the economy is not a temporary downturn, things are not going to get better, this scam has been meticulously planned and executed. We are now well into the end game and accelerating.
The current situation is only going to get worse for the majority of us, but not all at the same time, otherwise 'they' will have a full scale revolt on their hands.
But don't lose heart, these 'people' are beatable, but it will not happen at the ballot box nor through trade union intervention, nor will it happen by violent revolution.
The way to protect yourself and ultimately beat these corporate scumbags is to educate yourself in THE TRUTH.
Our mental and physical health and strength are paramount, we are being attacked by stealth. Learn to avoid the pitfalls.
Parliamentary politics is a joke, find out who is really calling the shots.
Justice is a misnomer, it is all about revenue collection and control. We can beat them at their own game in the commerce con. Search for the Winston Shrout Kelowna BC Lectures on google video.
The Inter-Alpha banks are literally stealing the world, via the IMF. Cutting edge intel on what is really occurring with the economy and how to protect yourself in the coming depression.
OMG! If I have to educate myself out of my poverty trap it is possibly a bit late having already retired. I will just settle for hating all fat cats whether they are bankers or TUC wankers - all tarred with the same self interest brush.
ReplyDeleteold timer i understand, but you will be cross with yourself that you are being given tory proganda just the same as thatcher did with the miners.
ReplyDeletefact, public sector workers pay into a pension, wheather that was or wasn't invested is not under their control and we where not aware of that
Fact an on average public sector workers pay more in and are more likely to pay in to a pension than private sector workers.
fact in the NHS we are made on taking our pension forced to opt out of the higher state pension so we can only claim what a person who never worked can.
fact I pay taxes and if you claim a pension from the govenment just like mine turns out to be, in is funded at present by my taxes and is not invested, so QED, be careful what you wish for,
First they came for the communists,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a communist.
Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a trade unionist.
Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a Jew.
Then they came for me
and there was no one left to speak out for me.
Pension Mythbuster is as guilty of swallowing Labour pension propoganda as I am alleged to have absorbed that of the Tories.
ReplyDeleteLike most on the left he seems incapable of accepting that countries, like individuals, have to learn to live within their means. Similarly he presumably finds it acceptable for union hierachy to live off the fat of the land yet would deplore such amongst the perceived boss class. What outdated nonsense.
Over my working life I lost sixteen years of pension service because of the legislation of Wilson's government, was once made redundant to create vacancies in a company takeover and was denied compensation for an injury sustained on military service under Blair's government. No union or Labour administration has ever done anything more for me than any Tory one.
Basically we all stand or fall by our own efforts and anybody who tells you otherwise is bull shitting, probably to create a nice little earner for themselves like TUC officials and MPs.
pension myth buster seems like you typical liberal lefty gone bonkers
ReplyDelete"New Fat Cat List"
ReplyDeleteno longer will they be allowed to be remote from the real world
looks like Carter not going to make a lord 'fingers crossed for small mercies' now for the all the rest who stand by whilst people suffer
some cracking comments already
http://www.kentonline.co.uk/kentonline/news/2011-1/september/16/cllr_paul_carter.aspx