Recent Strike Action
I am sure that many are suprised by the recent set of strikes to afflict the U.K. though it is important that we show solidarity with the unions in this matter. We have seen strikes from health-care workers in Sheffield, another from the Prison Officers' and once more with the tube staff in London.
I am especially suprised at the actions of the government in calling for a legal end to the Prison Officers' Strike. With inflation currently running at around 4.8% at last check any pay rise below this is unacceptable. Therefore, in reality the 2.5% pay rise offered to the Prison workers was is in fact a pay cut. This offer was simply not good enough. The Prison Officers Association did not take strike action lightly; in fact they did so with 87% support from the membership.
I recently had the good fortune to discover the blog of Yeovil Conservative parliamentary candidate, Kevin Davis, who recently wrote a brief blog condemning the strikes as "ridiculous" and as being "silly".
I feel that i am right in labelling this as a limited typically Conservative viewpoint.
Obviously, while the pay of Chief Executives continues to rise 20 times over inflation and as pay in the UK's top companies for those Chief Executives soars by 37% the workforce here is simply supposed to remain quiet and to not complain about being subjected to a poor under inflation pay rise.
And so too are the tube workers supposed to remain silent over fears for their job security, pension loss and forced transfers. Yes it is quite true that guarantees were given that this would not happen, but they were only short-term guarantees. It is not short-term promises that pay the mortgage.
Is this acceptable?
As a party we have been charged with allowing the rich/poor divide to horribly grow wider and if we want it to stop then we need to show solidarity with our public sector workers and offer them a decent deal when it comes to pay. To strike is never a desired course of action but one which comes out of cruel necessity.
Let us remember to put our low paid workers before the interests of big business.
Lee Skevington
CLP Secretary
I am especially suprised at the actions of the government in calling for a legal end to the Prison Officers' Strike. With inflation currently running at around 4.8% at last check any pay rise below this is unacceptable. Therefore, in reality the 2.5% pay rise offered to the Prison workers was is in fact a pay cut. This offer was simply not good enough. The Prison Officers Association did not take strike action lightly; in fact they did so with 87% support from the membership.
I recently had the good fortune to discover the blog of Yeovil Conservative parliamentary candidate, Kevin Davis, who recently wrote a brief blog condemning the strikes as "ridiculous" and as being "silly".
I feel that i am right in labelling this as a limited typically Conservative viewpoint.
Obviously, while the pay of Chief Executives continues to rise 20 times over inflation and as pay in the UK's top companies for those Chief Executives soars by 37% the workforce here is simply supposed to remain quiet and to not complain about being subjected to a poor under inflation pay rise.
And so too are the tube workers supposed to remain silent over fears for their job security, pension loss and forced transfers. Yes it is quite true that guarantees were given that this would not happen, but they were only short-term guarantees. It is not short-term promises that pay the mortgage.
Is this acceptable?
As a party we have been charged with allowing the rich/poor divide to horribly grow wider and if we want it to stop then we need to show solidarity with our public sector workers and offer them a decent deal when it comes to pay. To strike is never a desired course of action but one which comes out of cruel necessity.
Let us remember to put our low paid workers before the interests of big business.
Lee Skevington
CLP Secretary
posted by Lee Skevington at
Wednesday, September 05, 2007
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