to think all public sector workers

[ChuffinAda]

Should be chained to the job, not allowed time off for personal reasons and should pay us, the tax payers, for the privilege? That they should not be permitted lunch breaks and shouldn't be able to claim expenses?

Or am I being ever so slightly maybe possibly unreasonable in my expectation that they are robots?

We had an extremely 'glossy' public face - website, publicity material etc - that made it look like there should be teams of people waiting to answer phones, make site visits etc etc. In actual fact, there were two of us and a storage cupboard. I remember reading a book as a child in which a school was trying to convince someone that they had far more pupils than they did so the pupils had to keep changing jumpers and running to greet the visitors in different places pretending to be different children. That's exactly how my job felt.

Each public sector worker should be assigned to an individual tax payer and the tax payer should be able to coke visit the worker they pay for and pet them and feed them naice food also they should get an update report on their workers performance and be refunded any taxes for slacking of said worker

shoot me now

That is sheer brilliance username. Rich people could own more than one and there could be some sort of trade system in place for replacing dud ones. To save on unnecessary costs, when their taxpayer dies the public sector workers they own should follow them into the afterlife Ancient Egyptian style.

You should come to Ireland. Civil Servants over here get every Christmas day off. Lazy feckers.

We could trade them based on their IT skills it would be like some weird human trading card game

PaulineFosssil

Mr Tick the Teacher!

I've got a new desk. And a window. I have to share it and they haven't put the computer points in yet but still, I'm no longer in a cupboard.

Thanks, taxpayers

Just to update the thread, today I went to a meeting and there was coffee, for free! I enjoyed every last drop of my Instant Kenco Special knowing that you tax paying mugz were paying for it.

.

I have never seen free coffee ever!

I also went to a meeting today, which had not only free coffee, but also DANISH PASTRY!
I nearly fell off my chair. Genuinely have never seen the likes of it. It was a joint health and social care meeting.

I knew the health service were rolling in it. Robbing bastards.

I've definitely never seen a free danish pastry. I'm working in the wrong trust.

My lovely new desk now has computer points. Not sure if they work yet though, but it's better than just wires coming out the wall.

It's sad indictment to the lack of general public understanding that my best friend (whom is usually a sane normal person) when she started working for the NHS actually commented when asked how it was going "apparently the milk in the staff fridge isn't free, can't they just provide it?) She was also very surprised that her work Xmas do was going to cost her £20........... I recall saying "you think taxpayers should pay for your party"? She hadn't looked at it like that before. I promised she is not an entitled or stupid person either!

When I did used to have a nice office and desk I had to source my own desk.

We had an old semi derelict nurses accommodation and I heard rumours there were desks in the old bedrooms. Me and my boss went creeping up in this empty building, three flights of stairs into the attics. Found some desks and chairs! Carried them down and cleaned them up ourselves.

My desk never worked properly, the drawers sat on top of each other. If I wanted to get in the bottom drawer I had to lift off the top drawer, then the middle drawer to get to the last one. Chair had a big rip in it which was covered with a pillowcase.

I have fond memories of my private sector job where we all had made to measure desks. Someone would come round with a tape measure and deem if the desk was the right height for you or if you needed a special low one or high one, order you a foot rest, an ergonomic wrist rest, if you wanted a head set for the phone that was ordered, etc! Team meetings with bacon butties at breakfast or fully catered with Chili and curry for lunch meetings.

Help me wise women of MN, I assume yes from some of the replies but is the NHS part of the Public Sector? A Google search throws up mostly LA examples. And if I work for the NHS am I a Civil Servant? Is it the same? It's a right pain in the arse filling out credit applications/ insurance details when you have no idea!

Nhs is public sector but not civil service.

Thank you. Is Civil Service LA or something else? Police? MP's?

It's public sector, not sure if it would make you a civil servant. I assumed that was just government roles, so councils and LAs.

Tbf, it's more like a workbench than a desk Viva, and draws and shelves are in short supply (i.e. there aren't any). And because building work can't go without a cock up somewhere the builders have removed all the plug sockets in one of the adjoining rooms, which is helpful.

Civil servants are not local authority staff. They are officers in HM Civil Service, just the the military are members of HM Armed Forces

Thank you and sorry for derailing the thread! What would make someone Civil Staff? Where would they work? I know in the Home Office but where else? I'm sorry to be so thick but Google is very vague about such matters (it didn't even tell me I'm a Public Servant)!

I was told by a MNetter on a thread a few weeks ago that as a teacher I was pointless. The bright children would succeed really well without me anyway and I was rubbish at helping the children with additional needs. Even if that were the case (it's not) there are millions of children in between these two categories! It was such a superior, unpleasant "you moaning teachers are all the same thread" and anyone who dared defend themselves was accused of being defensive.....probably because they were under attack.

You're a civil servant if you work for any government department. For example: DTI, DWP, DCLG, Home Office, HMRC etc

Wrt to Danish pastries - it was GP led conference.

You can't expect a GP to attend any sort of meeting without free food.

In adult services we are beside ourselves with excitement if we can find a jug to fill with tap water.

It's a great exercise in how the other half live.

its just fucking shit isn't it.

I don't even know how to whistleblow just how badly the local authority I work for is failing vulnerable people on a massive scale. People are actually dying because we don't have enough staff or resources or money or managers who have a clue how to sort things out.

Experienced staff members have departed from us because of stress, work related injury, general work related ill health and in one extremely sad event suicide

and we are told there are more cuts to come.

but yeah - I get 45p a mile for travel expenses, 90% maternity pay for 6 weeks before SMP and I get chucked a free pencil from time to time (genuinely the only perks I can think of). So clearly me and all my public sector friends are laughing at all the poor tax payers whilst we are raking it in

DH is public sector. He doesn't get expenses, a lunch break or overtime and has no right to strike. Their 'gold plated' pensions are paid for through a system where the people still working fund the retired. No money is taken from the public pot.

He does get free coffee in Pret and free bus travel though. Wanker.

Free coffee in pret?!

I'd be beside myself.

Does he know how good he has it?