A lot of people seem to be against these strikes, some for well thought out reasons, some because they don’t want their train delayed….
Anyway, my small contribution to the arguement is as follows (for the record I support the strikes):
Most public sector works are under valued and under paid even in the best of times. In the public sector there is a lot of expolitation of the fact that many workers see their job as vocations, and are passionate about their job.
Yes the pension scheme is generous in quantitative terms (although this is also debatable), however, a whole career of being vastly underpaid compared to private counterparts surely outweighs this.
All public sector pay rises are going to be fixed at 1%… at a time when inflation is around 5%. On top of this, public sector workers are expected to pay 3% more into their pension. That’s effectively a -2% pay decrease in nominal terms, -7% in real terms.(roughly)
On top of this, there is the lack of job security, Osbourne announced that the estimated job losses in the sector will be double what was initially expected. One of the ‘bonuses’ of being an underpaid public sector worker was that it was a secure job. Admittedly, in the currrent climate, no job is really secure, but most private sector jobs aren’t also paired with a -7% pay cut.
Also, the public sector is grossly underestimated. People moaning about a day of interruption, you’re provided with free healthcare and free (good quality) education. I feel we’re very lucky to live in a country where you can receive both of these without having to worry about funding them.
It really riles me on various websites where people are moaning about the strikes, I think these strikes will emphasise the role and relevance of our public sector, and show why it needs to be treated better on a whole.
…as for the state of the economy, don’t even get me started. I think I need to make a political blog haha!!!
So yes, anyone on strike tomorrow, best of luck, and stay strong!!!
