to say this to all the teachers who are striking next week

[Memoo]

As a parent I am 100 % behind you.

I really appreciate that you put your life and soul into your job and im sorry more people don't get just how hard you work for the benefit of our children.

Don't let the bastards grind you down!

"at least one union suggested cutting employer contributions instead of raising employee contributions but for some reason, the government isn't keen." How would that work the employer in the public sector is the government if you want the same pension and do not want to pay more how . By saying employer contributions are cut that means more cost are being hidden (but still paid by the tax payer). This is what the report really shows that in theory the govenment (used to say) that the pension (eg teacher but similar for lotas of public sector workers) was 6.4% employee and 14% employer met. In reality it is actually up to 6.4% employee and 33.6% state.

X-post with Nobel. Interesting that the points we make are identical though. Do you really not see the value in what we are fighting for?

Can I just add to giraffe's post that I've been doing policy research for a dozen or so years now, and financial cuts and crises have been regularly invoked by all political parties during that time, regardless of the credit crunch (which in policy documents is being given a status akin to the global warming disaster of the economic world). For example, in the early 2000s we carried out a study looking at teachers' professional development, only to find with dismay that people were tearing their hair out about the escalation in their workload and the huge cuts to training budgets at the time. This continued until around 2006, when the Labour government started more intelligent schemes to develop and retain staff through accredited training programmes. These schemes were all killed off by the Conservatives when they were elected. Politicians may spend enormous amounts of time invoking doom and gloom, but the situation is always more complicated than it seems and simplistic 'what would you do then to find 3 trillion pounds' questions don't quite get at this, nor do solutions like 'I know, let's abandon our pension obligations'. Complex problems require complex long-term solutions, such as:

1. Decoupling high street and investment banking globally. They always used to be separate and there was a good reason why.

1. Linking risk and return more intelligently, i.e don't reward people vast sums of money straight away in case the return for their investment plummets in the medium term.

1. Promoting more collective buy in to social structures, welfare and taxation so you don't have an overly influential cadre of citizens remote from the experience of the majority of the population dictating their own terms, at the expense of the masses. Particularly make it cool to pay tax, rather than the current system whereby hedge funds and the like think it's vaguely distasteful, preferring to bung a little bit of philanthropic money instead. Taxation, or paying your tithe, should be about the collective good, not pet projects with fawning people applauding you, or building your PR brand. Currently we have a situation where Leona Helmsley's famous phrase "Only the little people pay taxes" seems to be common currency amongst the super wealthy, as they completely opt out of using the same healthcare and education systems as the rest of us. This polarises society and is extremely harmful in the medium to long term (look at New York).

1. Continue to promote entrepreneurship, but give more focus to middle ranking businesspeople who form the backbone of this country, rather than the cult of personality that surrounds a few mouthy and televisual high fliers. Things have got far too individualistic.

1. Instead of all the hand-wringing about why our school system is not as good as Finland's, we should respect the fact that unlike them, we have a diverse population and start developing systems that allow ebb and flow between state and private education, academic and vocational streams, and encourage children to have structured lives. Gove is attempting to dismantle a lot of this at the moment and policy has become extremely chaotic, but it doesn't need to be.

1. Finally, be patient. It took us a decade to get into this mess, and it will take a decade to get out of it. But it is possible and we are not all starving to death so a sense of perspective is required.

"It seems that people only see their part of the sector and compare it with the highest paid part of the opposite sector, and then feel that they come out worse off." yes I totally agree. Hence the complaints about "fat cats" and bankers. Everyone is struggling, because the world is in a financial crisis. We can't get away from that. I know this are tough. My argument is that striking makes things worse, that's all.

What other alternative would you suggest?

Organic, I would suggest that the government show us all the different options and possibilities that are there with full figures and honest outcomes. That's what I suggest and that's what I'm fighting for.

I have made no wage comparisons, I have not criticised the public sector. I criticise the right to strike though to maintain a currently unfundable pension scheme (ultimately that will be paid for by our children).

iggly - that wouldn't assume that my pension remained the same, concessions may be made in other areas at the same time. But if they are saying savings are needed to be made right now -as we are in such a financial mess right now why not lower employer contributions? Why make me pay more instead?

A lot of people can't afford to pay more pension contributions and are considering opting out of the scheme if this happens. I wonder if this is what the government wants, seemingly remarkably short-sighted given the problems that people with no provision for their pension cause the economy. But I suppose it might be another government by then.

Fair, honest and transparent as I believe that I have posted many times.

"I criticise the right to strike though to maintain a currently unfundable pension scheme (ultimately that will be paid for by our children)."

Are you deliberately ignoring the fact that we don't expect it to me maintained. We/I expect a FAIR, HONEST, TRANSPARENT solution.

The report (again):
www.public-sector-pensions-commission.org.uk/wp-content/themes/pspc/images/Public-Sector-Pensions-Commission-Report.pdf

It has ways to make it viable. Not pleasant reading (odd the Unions have not advertised it ) . All offers will be (very, very, very likely) more generous than those mentioned.

Yipee I made a link

iggly, I've just started reading the report and here's a quote

"Any reform to unfunded public sector pension schemes has to start with transparency. This is not an option but an essential pre-requisite"

Government fail there then.

The amazing thing is that the country can afford a day off for the Royal Wedding, and the Queen's thing next year, yet the strikes will cost us a fortune we can't afford.

When Maxwell plundered his employees' pension funds he wasn't very popular.

The report is tackling the transparency its stating the costs were hidden.

For so long everything was brushed under the carpet (by both governments) I am actually pretty unpolitical.

I think the Royal Wedding may make money with memorabilia etc long term. Not sure.

Thanks for looking at it Noble Girraffe .

It also compares current situation to a Ponzi scheme.

"But if they are saying savings are needed to be made right now -as we are in such a financial mess right now why not lower employer contributions? " then you would have to get less pension afterwards.

Yes, I understand that, iggy. But as it stands were are paying more and getting less pension afterwards anyway. We are not paying more and keeping the same pension.

In somways this is brave as it adresses a problem that has not dared to be mentioned. It may actually be coming up now as other countries we need to currently invest in us will be looking at our finances and see these liabilites and be put off by them. Greece and Italy are suffering in a large part also due to pension liabilites.

Noble Giraffe I clearlt stated earlier the generosity of the pension (6.4% employee up to 33.6% state. Something has to give.

clearly

Sorry my English is not gaao (typing worse!). Numbers I do like though.

This is something that worried me long before now.

Opps good!