Do you support the RMT?

[BobKowalski]

On a related note, Barristers have voted to strike next week bringing the justice system to a halt.

No doubt the Govt will threaten to bring in agency workers to replace them.

 

[mexico1970]

I think it depends on who is saying it.
If it was one of his cronies, he would not have dared correct it.
We must stick together, no dissension in the ranks.
I have even had one of the cronies having a dig in an unrelated so called more light hearted thread.
I can see why the majority can’t be arsed posting.
True to form the poll is now down to 5.9% against the strike and if that reflects reality, I would personally fund the pay rise.

In the real world the support isn't anywhere near as much, and as soon as the strike happens the support they have will dwindle to even less.

You can't ever take this website or any other website as being the norm because it most definitely isn't.

Where does public opinion stand on the rail strikes?

Younger people are far more likely than older people to support striking train workers.

www.newstatesman.com

 

[bluethrunthru]

On a related note, Barristers have voted to strike next week bringing the justice system to a halt.

No doubt the Govt will threaten to bring in agency workers to replace them.

The accused and defence lawyer being indistinguishable to the judge ?

 

[halfmist]

Wages, in a capitalist society, are decided by supply and demand. That's why KDB is on £300k a week, because you won't find a dozen KDBs standing in the dole queue.

We now have a labour shortage (caused largely by Brexit) plus raging inflation on a scale that anyone aged under about 50 has never known. In such circumstances, pressure for higher wages is inevitable. The Tories and their fans don't like it, but it's their system. They wrote the rule book. Going on strike is no different, in essence, to Tesco putting up a tin of peas by 20p. No one calls that 'holding the country to ransom' do they? Come to that, they haven't said it about the oil companies ripping us off with their ridiculous prices. No, that's OK, because they aren't workers, and have their dividends and directors' fees to consider.

Thatcher resolved an issue of high inflation and high demand for wage increases by creating a pool of three million unemployed. I doubt that trick can be repeated any time soon.

But you fail to mention a couple of very important points.
The railways get public subsidies ie, tax payers money.
Their pay levels are therefore not determined by market forces, if they were, the costs of the train fares would choke off demand, fewer trains would be needed and fewer staff.
And 2, Union Power has resulted in an artificially high Labour rate and conditions for the job. As the Railways are in effect a monopoly there are no alternatives for customers to take their business elsewhere.

 

[bluethrunthru]

Union Power has resulted in an artificially high Labour rate and conditions for the job

How do you know they are high labour rates and better t&c's? What are you comparing them with bearing in mind as you say this is a monopoly?

 

[urban genie]

I think it depends on who is saying it.
If it was one of his cronies, he would not have dared correct it.
We must stick together, no dissension in the ranks.
I have even had one of the cronies having a dig in an unrelated so called more light hearted thread.
I can see why the majority can’t be arsed posting.
True to form the poll is now down to 5.9% oppose the strike and if that reflects reality, I would personally fund the pay rise.

Nah, I get pulled on my spelling mistakes all the time no matter the forum, post or the subject.

Political opinion has never come into it.

 

[BrianW]

A monopoly? Cars, buses, coaches, aircraft, and lorries have all been uninvented?
I must go out and buy some railway shares forthwith!

You have a point with government subsidy. But that subsidy is for a strategic purpose. It's cheaper than closing the railways and replacing them with additional roads which, because of the lower capacity of roads, would take up much more land than the railways do. The subsidy is not paid because the government are avid supporters of railways.

I would also point out that there are government subsidies, many of them hidden, all over the economy.

Union power is a good thing. Otherwise, it would be Joe Soap against the mighty machine. If employers had been more enlightened, back in the day, unions would never have been invented. But they could not resist (in Britain anyway) treating their workers like serfs. Some still do, particularly where people don't have unions.

 

[BobKowalski]

But you fail to mention a couple of very important points.
The railways get public subsidies ie, tax payers money.
Their pay levels are therefore not determined by market forces, if they were, the costs of the train fares would choke off demand, fewer trains would be needed and fewer staff.
And 2, Union Power has resulted in an artificially high Labour rate and conditions for the job. As the Railways are in effect a monopoly there are no alternatives for customers to take their business elsewhere.

Well, clearly they are not a monopoly. Passengers and freight can be moved by road so there are alternatives. If you mean no other form of transit can use the rail system other than trains, then yes, but then trains don’t work on roads either.

 

[halfmist]

They were backdating the pension for women who suddenly had their pension date changed. It was nothing to do with the agreed equalisation, just another grubby Tory policy.

You really don't do detail, do you?

And I never thought I'd hear anyone say again "we can't afford it". What's the national debt? What's the current tax take?

I am afraid that’s how all Governments work
You tell me one Government through history who have announced tax changes more than a few months ahead.
The State Pensions have become unsustainable in an ageing population.
We were getting to the stage where the younger smaller workforce would not be able to fund the pension pot
The only other way to fund State Pensions would have been through borrowing , placing further burdens on future generations
At least the Tories had the balls to do something about it even if wasn’t popular.

 

[BlueMoonday]

Train travel is awful these days, really can't stand the fact they are closing ticket offices and leaving stations unmanned. On some northern rail stations they have switched ticket machines off so they only way to buy tickets is through an app which can be challenging for the older generation. You are then met by security agency staff at Manchester Piccadilly. The whole experience is embarrassing, all so greed companies can pocket an extra few quid.

Pay the staff a decent wage, improve the service and stop being fucking greedy.