fourteen2two
Corporal
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Maybe the govt will consider privatisation of passports services? They have done it for other services and we have seen how successful some of it has been?
Back in the day the unions would rattle the tins, at football matches, on picket lines, in the local clubs and pubs to boost the union hardship fund to "pay" the strikers for not going to work.Unions don't typically cover wages. Going on strike typically results in hardship for those taking the action. If they're not at work, they don't get paid, and this can also impact on their pensions as well. It's a very unusual union that will cover your wages.
Correct DS. Its sorted the Easter childcare issues out for many of my team!
Well I for one hope the privatisation goes all the way.Thanks. However my grade are not involved. Its targeted at those of certain grades who examine and produce, and salaries will be paid by the union for those who strike. There's quite a stampede to sign up for membership at the moment!
In answer to Busby's point, much of it has been handed over to the private sector. Teleperformance have handled customer calls for a few years now - last year customers either couldnt get through, or got through and were given incorrect information, which was a big factor in the backlogs.
Yes - . And covering the wages of those who join up over the next week or so - and there are a lot suddenly realising that they have two options here - go on strike, or be one of the very few coming to work every day, dealing with angry customers, not being able to take leave over those weeks unless pre-booked, and day after day seeing the queue of applications getting bigger and bigger.And the union is covering wages for the entire time???
The problem when they privatise they don’t look for parity of service and cost, which would probably leave a little profit for a similar service, they try to reduce cost, so typically end up with a much worse service. For some reason the government never have open book contracts where SLAs are correctly defined and an agreed margin permitted.
like the other strikes we will all have an opinion on whether or not people are being greedy, for me the high demands in the rail industry, Junior Drs and Initial expectations of nurses are a little rich, but for these guys asking for more than 2 per cent seems reasonable, with 5 or 6 percent more typical at the moment.
Unusual for Senior Management to be part of a union, isn’t it?Yes - . And covering the wages of those who join up over the next week or so - and there are a lot suddenly realising that they have two options here - go on strike, or be one of the very few coming to work every day, dealing with angry customers, not being able to take leave over those weeks unless pre-booked, and day after day seeing the queue of applications getting bigger and bigger.
There are over 100,000 members who each pay a monthly levvy of up to £25 a month and have done for years. We also contribute an extra £5 a month to the wage fund, and have done since the ballot to strike was passed by around 90% of the membership, so there is a lot of money in the coffers. The union are covering net wages, so pension contributions wouldnt be covered and would become the choice of the individual whether to miss a payment or make it up themselves. Similarly, non-rostered days arent covered, so HMPO will still be paying everyone for the public holidays, as the strike days are recorded daily and pay witheld for that day.
Last year, me and my team moved heaven and earth to deal with a backlog due to Covid, with most people doing close to 12 hour days, often working 7 day weeks, including over the jubilee weekend. Then we saw our "thanks" from the Govt. I'm sorry for those inconvenienced, but 2% pay increase imposed when inflation is running at close to 11% and my team earning barely more than the person who cleans the bogs is beyond acceptable. I have 60 year olds who walk two miles to work because they cant afford the bus fare and others who use food banks. Some of the staff have to get a raise in April because they are on minimum wage. Aldi staff now earn just 13p an hour less than my passport examiners - and they probably get staff discount at Aldi!
Very much so. My grade hasnt been called out on strike, so now I am expected to help run a service to mitigate the impact caused by my union (who I give money to) calling my team to walk out.Managers in the public sector are generally in unions or employee associations (which act just like a union).
For me personally they would raise a conflict of interest, Ive never met a private sector HR bod who has been in one, however, there have been plenty of times I would have like to have been able to call on one.
Conflict of interest!Managers in the public sector are generally in unions or employee associations (which act just like a union).
For me personally they would raise a conflict of interest, Ive never met a private sector HR bod who has been in one, however, there have been plenty of times I would have like to have been able to call on one.
Just over a week in and whilst there is no chaos like last year, having 60% of your operational staff out, on top of those who had pre-booked Easter leave, is starting to bite, with shortages in specific skill areas. And its not a case of "train some up", because there's nobody to do that training as they are out. Management are hopeful of an increase in workers once the Easter holidays are over, but those people who have been on AL since 3 April could just as easily go on strike instead of coming back to work. PCS are currently balloting for another 6 month mandate, and a "yes" vote could see the 5 weeks become longer.Very much so. My grade hasnt been called out on strike, so now I am expected to help run a service to mitigate the impact caused by my union (who I give money to) calling my team to walk out.
Hmm, I received the email from the Cabinet Secretary and it doesn't mention the £1.5k as being part of the pay 'offer' open for negotiation. It's a flat rate cost of living payment for all CS and outside of any pay rises on the table.Update - my grade was called out for the first week in May and I did join my colleagues on the picket line. It was a fancy dress day and I turned up in a Pikachu outfit (or picket-chu as I was labelled!)
The original offer was 2%. During the strike, it was increased to 4.5%, with an additional 0.5% for the lowest paid. After another "yes" vote to another 6 months of industrial action, today the offer has now included a £1500 flat rate one-off payment. for last year and a commitment to not change the redundancy package until at least 2025.
Our NEC will be discussing it on Monday once the fine print has been looked at and I await their recommendation.