Would you strike?

[Drone]

The question no longer applies to me. I am retired. But I was on strike a few times, the last occasion being in defence of pensions. Now there was a vested interest. I have met people from time to time who objected to taking strike action. For some it was a religious conviction. Others objected that as they worked in schools, children would suffer. I never met any of those objectors who held their beliefs so strongly that they would refuse to accept the benefits that their striking colleagues won for them.

[Jubbs]

In my day, I would have stiked had it been a request from my union, otherwise whats the point of joining one.

[Dexter]

Problem is, any pay increases needs to be kept under inflation otherwise it just pushes inflation up even further.

I don't think that will be an issue for us as there is a big difference between the 3% planned offer and 9% inflation.

I'm retired now, I'd like a bigger pension but I have no option to strike.

Your Local Government pension should go up with inflation (CPI?) and state pensioners will enjoy at least a 9% rise as they benefit from the triple lock. The only down side is the time lag that means that you feel the effects of inflation before you finally get the compensatory rise.

[OXSET]

Tough one.

Should serious organised action and response to the state of the government / living standards and costs happen? in my eyes.. Yes.

Would I walk out if it was just support staff? No
Would I walk out if it was ALL staff? Yes.

Would I join in a general strike? Yes.

[TheTakerofCare]

Your Local Government pension should go up with inflation (CPI?) and state pensioners will enjoy at least a 9% rise as they benefit from the triple lock. The only down side is the time lag that means that you feel the effects of inflation before you finally get the compensatory rise.

Triple lock has been frozen, then will be quietly abolished when no-one is looking, hence the bribe to bring it back recently, in time for by-elections and HOC votes of NC etc.

Problem is, any pay increases needs to be kept under inflation otherwise it just pushes inflation up even further.

I'm retired now, I'd like a bigger pension but I have no option to strike.

This has been totally debunked, this is why we are here, because some still believe this line, Its profits that would be hit not inflation, greed and rampant capitalism are the enemy here not someone asking for 50 quid extra per week.

Lucikly someone has come along and spoken truth to power, notice how he has dropped off your radar, it's never coincidence.

[TheTaker]

if it was all support staff i would not just caretakers though as they already think were the lowest of the low from the top

[hawkwind]

YES!!

Teachers claim that their pay has fallen over 20% in real terms, since 2010, and our pay has risen fractionally less than theirs. The government has told councils to prepare for a 2-3% rise for 2022 (whilst inflation is over 9%.) The situation is not sustainable. Recruitment and retention are already an issue. We have a problem with some private sector cleaning jobs paying above caretaker grades. We also have some pay points falling off pay structures because they have been overtaken by the Living Wage and sometimes the Minimum Wage.

The problem is that since 2010 the public sector pay award, or total lack of it (Pay freeze) has been used as a political tool. If there is an unexpected cost to the economy the first thing that they announce is a freeze on public sector pay. This shouldn't be done year on year without redress or you get the issues we are encountering and will continue to.

I'm retiring in 4 years but think that enough is enough. I will strike even if I do not recoup my lost pay form the strike days. We are not being considered and continue to get an annual kicking.

Great post.
Without a doubt I would strike.
The Tory government have used austerity as an excuse for 12 years now, it will never be over for public sector workers as long as they are in power.
Don't forget that the lower our wage then the lower our LGP pension will be when we retire as well.

[Handyman]

It looks as though teaching unions have rejected a deal of 4-9% (depending on where they are in their career). We'll see where this ends up, but I would definitely consider striking considering how big the pay gap between teaching and non-teaching staff could end up. I don't think caretakers striking on their own would make enough of a difference, but it might make people take notice if there was nobody in the office or the school kitchen either.

Police are not allowed to strike but in Scotland they are considering refusing to only work after hours when ordered (claiming overtime) and leaving all their equipment at the police station which means they will take longer to be ready for duty. Not really shocking as the offered £11 a week payrise is not really going to help out much.

[magpie]

Retired now but i would certainly strike. You can come up with lots of excuses about how it wouldn't do any good unless eveyone was out but i am sure any strike would include cleaners, admin staff or any other union members. There are times when you have to make a stand, how long can a group of people such as school support staff be trodden on when it comes to pay and conditions. I was only involved on one strike in my time but was on the picket line outside school and we even managed to get classroom assts and a couple of teaching staff refuse to cross our picket line. As long as the reason for the strike is personal and important to you then i think everyone should strike, just my personal opinion

[Dexter]

This was posted online yesterday. Its better than I expected although it does not cover the full increase in the cost of living. I suspect that it will be agreed - its just a matter of when.

https://local.gov.uk/emps-njc-tus-pay-o ... -july-2022