Tax officers in Leicester on strike over pay and pensions

“reubedube: Completely get where you're coming from, please don't think that i meant all civil servant jobs are well paid, afford amazing benefits, pensions etc etc. I'm not blind to the fact that both sectors have their ups and downs.

My view is that in the current climate of harsh cuts to peoples working conditions in the private sector, non or minimal pay rises for years etc etc; it is a slap in the face that public servants in low skill roles (although you can gain enormous experience in clerical roles that would afford the kinda pay increase i mentioned by moving into the private sector) are demanding a lump sum payment of £1200.

High level maths on my behalf but with roughly 8m civil servants, that's an additional tax burden of £9.6bn to the wealth creating private sector.... is that fair?? I think the answer has to be a resounding NO!

I'm not saying all civil servants can go suck my fat, i'm saying lets give the pay increases to the civil servants we all value the most (teachers, nurses, armed forced etc etc). Clerical roles will have to wait until we're out of the recession, have gotten rid of the deficit and are finally in a surplus each year, before demanding the kind of increases that they want. In the meantime if you're unhappy with the level of pay that the public can afford to pay you, then apply for an equivalent role in the private sector that pays the level of salary you want. I get that there aren't many "new" jobs out there, but people are still mobile and as a result businesses have to back fill where they lose an employee, these employers will look for people with the relevant skills and experience which can be demonstrated by the very clerical people that went on strike yesterday (i did it, so i know its possible).”

“LaPetomane. "yet again your throw away rubbish... if you feel so bad that lopwly civil servants in a little tax office have everything so much better, you should have tried harder and made something of yourself."

If every individual is responsible for their own situation then can we get rid of diversity officers, equality commissioners, quotas, unions, grants and all state benefits? Not forgetting all those highly paid civil servants who's job is to iron out the disparities of the free market?

You contradict yourself when it suits you.

I'm aware that the public sector is changing. But it's still got a long way to go to bring itself in-line with the plight of ordinary people. It still reeks of privilege.”

“biker dan82:Like yourself I have worked in both sectors, mainly private sector, plus some years of self-employment, but also more than 15 years in the public sector. Along the line there were good and less good aspects in the work and the 'terms and conditions' of employment in both sectors.

You write "There are plenty of well paid roles out there if you're a skilled individual"..... !

But surely, therein lies the rub, 'if you are a skilled individual' ! What about those who are not skilled or are simply, semi-skilled ?
I don't think it necessarily follows that because one is a civil service employee, that person is a skilled person.

It is in my opinion a huge mistake to talk about public sector workers as if they are all enjoy the same level of pay, perks, pensions and holiday entitlements. Of course they do not, no more than those in the private sector. For some of my time working in the private sector I put up with miserable conditions of work and poor pay, and bosses who were happy to exploit me in order to maximise their profits, (because it was more important to me to have a job than to be 'on the dole'). At one time I was driving from Coventry wholesale market to Paddock Wood in Kent, loading up with produce from the growers and driving back to Coventry; I was working an 18 hour day; obviously not legal ! When after a near accident I told the boss I would no longer do the run, I finished up without a job ! He got someone else to do the run.
That was when I did not possess any real skills, but was only semi-skilled, a lorry driver. A few weeks training can put anyone into that category ! Times have changed now of course and health and safety laws (which many still criticise) would prevent that sot of thing happening now.

Hard work and study in my 'leisure time' , resulted in my being able to achieve a higher salary, more job satisfaction and becoming someone in the local community who could be relied upon to deliver on any promises made.

My own experience of how hard one has to work in order to move from a position of being one of mediocre education level and skills,to being more in command of one's own destiny, instilled in me a need to recognise that many others are unable to climb that hill.

Thus,I have no time for people like Cameron,Osborne and the rest of the motley crew. Osborne who today in his budget speech used Cameron's latest 'soundbite'; "This", he said, "is a budget for people who work hard and aspire to get on". What a load of baloney !

In general, most people want to work. There are of course plenty who prefer to laze around and perhaps enjoy making a nuisance of themselves, scrounging a living best way they can. Surely though such people are a minority; and it should be borne in mind that there are plenty of the more affluent who also are quite happy to skive their way through life, making obscene profits, avoiding paying their taxes and exploiting others in any way they can.

There is scum at the top as well as dregs at the bottom !”

“Fed up with hearing that everything in the private sector is so much harder than the public sector. The public sector has changed drastically in the last few years with pay freezes for several years, pension reductions, and big job losses. There are still plenty of people in good jobs in the private sector and plenty who are happy to receive bonuses and profit sharing which doesn't happen in the public sector. Sadly though this is now an employers market driven by opportunism of the economy, and employers wanting cheap labour with minimal salaries, terms and conditons plus the free market of Europe which does little for the average person.

I'm not a civil servant but there is no doubt they are one of the organisations that have had huge cuts in numbers. Like many of the cuts, they don't get rid of the people that could or should go, often the cuts are at the bottom unless middle and top ranks see lucrative opportunities for early pensions and generous redundancy terms. Sure the cuts in all the public services have left the little man doing the work of two. For many in local government, public sector, NHS, the low ranks of the police and police staff, the armed forces, they are feeling the cuts to breaking point and seeing salaries and pensions which are for the most part modest eroded away. Im sure the PCS have something to moan about and most of their members are no better off than many in similar private sector roles.

Oh, and those maoning about what it is like looking for jobs.. yes, this government wants you to feel scared and uneasy, not to take employment for granted, and be grateful for any job... thats the employers market they intended to create.

..and NickDiPerna1, yet again your throw away rubbish... if you feel so bad that lopwly civil servants in a little tax office have everything so much better, you should have tried harder and made something of yourself.”

“Whilst they have every right to strike subject to following the normal rules, I think they should have chosen a different day so they actually got a reasonable amount of publicity.”

“Dear detractors. 1000's of Leicester people work for minimum wage (£6.19): no pension, no perks, less holidays, no sick pay.

Minimum wage in the public sector is £7.45 per hour (especially if you work at the council). Do the math.

I know team leaders and managers in the private sector who don't even get £7.45.”

“reubedube, I've worked in both sectors and can hand on my heart state that i got a much easier ride working for the immigration tribunal, compared to previous private sector roles and the one I currently do.

No the pay wasn't better (a good £2K a year less for the same role in the private sector) BUT, the pension offering was substantially better, i had 5 days a year more holiday, guaranteed time off for bank hols and flexi working hours. The work ethic was astonishingly poor, any attempt by management to alter targets was greeted with an aggressive stance by the very same union on strike today. The same union that advised its member to NEVER accept the first payment offer tabled at the annual pay review. In fact the 3 years i worked for the immigration, we went on strike EVERY year and never received our revised pay package until well after April due to the wranglings going on (although i have to admit it usually helped getting the backdated pay just before Christmas).

There are plenty of well paid roles out there if you're a skilled individual, Leicester has a number of large corporate businesses paying more for the same/similar roles completed by these workers on strike today and with most of these companies having about 8-10% staff turnover, it is wholly plausible for these people to find better paid roles if they so wish.”

“"Find a better paid job in the private sector" ! Would that be a part-time one, which is more likely the case with the supposed million plus the Coalition claim to have created in the past 3 years ?

Nick of course presumably thinks these people he apparently so despises, do not themselves pay any taxes. Also Nick, when you rant on (not for the first time), about better pay, perks ,holidays and pensions for public sector employees, you are simply spouting rubbish and just do not know what you are talking about.”

“Poor reporting from the Merc on this one, what are their issues with pay? What working conditions are so poor that they need to strike??

My understanding is that these pen pushers are asking for a 5% pay increase or a lump sum of £1200... Greedy! There are many more public servants that deserve a pay rise BEFORE this lot! Teachers, Nurses, Army Personnel... the list goes on. Stop being greedy and if you don't like it find a better paid job in the private sector!!”

“Dont they look a happy bunch. Is this the same union where ony 28% of its members bothered to vote? How much pay will they lose over the duration of this strike?”