Lothianlad

This "useless" bunch had been lumbered with the immense task in starting to pick up all the shattered pieces - social as well es econimic - left behind by the "one before". It was no accident that the new Goverment Treasury officials back in May 2010 saw the note left behind on a desk by the outgoing "one before" Treasury official which simply read: "Sorry - no more money left!"

If ever there was a true statement than that was it....now this "useless" bunch is left to deal with the harvest sown by the "one before"......and how very topical that is right now.

The UK has one massively over staffed (at the top end of "management" especially) and extremely over bureaucratic Public Sector when compared with the real wealth producers in this "once great nation" now left to struggle up a mountain rather than a hill - the Private Sector.

Rates of absenteeism from work and sick leave rates are far, far higher in the Public Sector than they are in the Private Sector, and now the Public Sector trades union Kommissars are calling out on strike all Public Sector employees tomorrow Wednesday 30/11/11 for one day......every group fom teachers (most of whom are left wingers anyway) and UK Botder personnel among others. All of this is in spite of the fact that the presnt Coalition Government has offered them a package of revised pension rights and other benefits far in excesss of anything Private Sector employees could even dream of getting in thise very straitened economic times.

The Trades Union Kommisariat refuse to acknowledge current economic facts, that people are now living longer and that the age of retirement - yes, even for Public Sector employees - simply [B]has[B] to be raised and gender equalised (which it will anyway) and that every one of us will have to work longer - it's reasonable fact of life - there is no sane alternative - and the over cossetted Public Sector shoulkd not be granted any kind of "special treatment".

Tomorrow 30/11/11 will be some kind of flashback to the indistrial turmool of the 1970s so graphically descibed in the social history of "this one great nation".

As Michael Gove, the Education Seecretary - said yesterday: "Some Trades Union officials are not interested in economic recovery, or the loss of a day's schooling for children, that striking Public Sector employees will lose a day's pay, or the fact that many employees in the Private Sector will also lose a day's pay because of childcare issues or the bare facts of economics in very diffiicult times - what they really are interested in is the bringing down of a Government for undeniably political reasons".

Who could possibly argue against that?

Tomorrow will be a day to make any Briton very proud indeed......NOT

tonrob

But can you show me any evidence that this is the case...?

gruffbrown

All your own work? That's very impressive.

HumphreyC

I used to work in the Public Sector and I think the rank and file deserve a bit of respect for all the crap they have to put up with; the long hours, idiotic tinkering from central government and the squandering of their pension funds. I mean tough decisions do need to be made but I think we can do without all the 'private sector good - public sector lazy, incompetent parasite stuff'.

robin1234

Never mind about being graphically descibed (sic), I remember the indistrial (sic) turmool (sic) of the 1970s and those were heroic times. The Baillie Vass, Grocer Heath, Harold Wislon, Jim Callaghan..heroic men for heroic times. Those midgets we have running the country now are just an embarrassment.

Uncle Ebenezer

Even if it's true?

HumphreyC

It is at the top (middle and upper management) absolutely; bar a few absolute saints. But those aren't the people who will be on the chopping block once the job cuts really get cranked up. From what I hear they have all reinvented themselves as 'Austerity Tsars'.

SultanOfSwing

Well said, mate. I was a civil servant myself, decision maker for Income Support. I was the one who had the final say on whether you got your money or not

Uncle Ebenezer

Q

E

D

GetOutOfBlighty

Did you do your job with an Iron fist or just tick all the boxes "yes"?

SultanOfSwing

Kiss my arse, I had my shit together.

Not saying I didn't like the bank holidays and that, but who doesn't like time off?

To the letter of the law. Most cases were straightforward - either they were entitled and I approved, or some other benefit/savings over the minimum superceded their entitlement and they were declined. Nine times out of ten denial was mathematical, the other time they just should have signed on instead as they were able to work.

gruffbrown

Do they still do Whitley's?

robin1234

I was a civil servant back in the 70s, Department of Employment and then the Ministry of Defence. At the DoE I worked in a section (HEO, four EOs and about a dozen clerks) where we paid expenses to officers who travelled from local offices to investigate claims etc. I seem to remember it was 2p a mile by car, and 0.5p a mile for a bicycle!! One of the vexed issues in my time was the distance from Beccles to Bungay.. was it more or less than six miles? Because if it was more than six miles, the officer (from Beccles) could claim a lunch if he was in Bungay, if less, then not. We spent months on that one. Simpler times!

SultanOfSwing

Not sure - that could have been a colloquialism. Though I was doing backline processing for Brent local offices in London and not actually a Belfast one, I never heard that term.

Was about 2002-2004 I was in IS, though.

Uncle Ebenezer

That wouldn't have been possible back then - civil servants are never off them long enough.