ATBU? Tories and DUP in favour of freezing public sector pay

[AtHomeDadGlos]

So, the Tories along with their cash rich friends the DUP have just voted down Labour's amendment (supported by every other MP) to end the public sector pay freeze.

So they can find £1bn to keep themselves in power but can't find anything to pay our firefighters, nurses, police force or teachers more?

TABU aren't they?

[maddening]

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-33552499

Mp pay rise 10% in 2015

[ghostyslovesheets]

Ilovegin I'd love some examples for reference

[Tw1nsetAndPearls]

Can I point out that lots of private sector workers aren't getting pay rises either.

But they are not paid by the government. Surely the government should set an example. Freezing the pay of the public sector won't prompt private sector bosses to raise your pay.
I also want to incentivise people to join and remain in our public services.

[maddening]

www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/mps-pay-rise-salary-commons-parliament-1000-public-sector-worker-pay-politicians-a7476601.html

And they got 1.4% last year on top of the 10% the year before

[maddening]

I have had a pay rise every year of 2% in public sector

[Tw1nsetAndPearls]

I would also be annoyed as a private sector worker if my pay was capped because my bosses had spent the budget on bribing another company so they could keep their jobs.

[LouiseBrooks]

I'm a private sector worker and I've had little (I.e.1-2%) or no pay rises since 2010. My commuting costs have gone up about 20% or more in that time. However I'm lucky compared to public sector workers, I do still get a 10% bonus which after tax covers half my train fare. I also have a nice job and don't have to work my arse off, do shifts or, thank God, risk my life. I don't have to daily see the effects of cuts in my workplace.

I despise this government who, despite themselves being public servants, never fail to vote themselves very nice pay rises every time.

[GraceGrape]

I had to take a pay cut a couple of years ago when I left an academy which made my life a misery. I couldn't find a part-time teaching job that would pay me on the upper pay scale so I took a job at the top of the main scale. Nowhere to progress from there.
My Tory MP made it clear when I questioned her about education funding recently that she finds teachers contemptible so I don't think there's much point writing to her.

[ExplodedCloud]

How come maddening?

[PookieDo]

The government are paying us, taking their own pay rises and not their public sector employees. So your taxpayer money, for your services is being spent on MP's, not the staff who every day hold up the entire countries emergency services, or teach millions of kids a day.

If you work in private sector I have the same sympathy if your directors do the same. But public sector working conditions are very often absolutely awful and it is also hard to find similar work in the private sector with relevant transferable skills that offers stablity. It is not as easy to just transfer jobs into private from public sector as it is with the competitive private job market. Like another poster said, there are no bonus potentials (there are in private), no negotiations and very limited promotional opportunities. Plus you are doing the jobs of 2-3 other people for no extra money. Many trusts refuse to pay overtime either so you are working for free.

[ghostyslovesheets]

I don't get paid overtime - I get TOIL - I am allowed to carry over a max of 20 hours a month - it's regularly over than

I can't find time to actually use my TOIL!

[TheFairyCaravan]

do public sector workers still have pay scales and spines etc which you automatically move up incrementally each year?

The armed forces don't anymore and they're not even guaranteed a pay rise on promotion. Their whole pay was overhauled. None of them were going to be worse off they said. Oh how I laughed! And of course I was right. People were moved down a band, they took pay cuts. Some will have to go up 2 ranks before they see anymore in their pay packets. Oh, and tney meddled with their pensions for good measure.

Every week someone who works with DH or DS1 signs off. They're begging people who were made redundant to come back. They don't understand why there's a recruitment and retention crisis and why some regimentss have less than 70% manning.

The whole of the public sector is on its knees and running on goodwill. It's going to break very, very soon. I'm so angry at the contempt shown to everyone who works in it. You are all worth so much more than 1%.

[PookieDo]

my colleagues work at least 5-10 hours a week each unpaid to catch up or because you just cannot clock off. Imagine having a life or death emergency - you can't just go home when it is your time to. But you probably won't get paid either.

If people come and compare checking emails on their personal time in private sector jobs to those who work in emergency services who work longer unpaid hours I will actually eat my own trousers

[PookieDo]

The TOIL system is a hilarious joke!

[ghostyslovesheets]

Isn't it just!

[PookieDo]

Every day one or more of my team gets stuck waiting for a non urgent ambulance (so the step down from a blue light 999 call) - could be within 4 hours. If your emergency happens at 5pm you are screwed. If this happens most days then when do you take your TOIL?

[PookieDo]

Also private sector people please feel free to share your vacancy and sickness rates with us here, because in public sector it's usually well below 75% - so that's 25%+ of your whole workforce with a continuous unfilled vacancy rate and staff too sick from the job to work.

[DeleteOrDecay]

I am speechless.

[QuantamBaby]

Thanks AtHome, I have written to my Tory MP using your email as the base. Let's see how she replies....

[noblegiraffe]

This is a master stroke by Corbyn, right? The Tories can't vote against it because it would be voting against the Queen's speech which is political suicide, so Labour proposed an amendment which would be supported by pretty much every member of the public, especially given recent events, knowing it wouldn't go through.

Labour are hoping for an election before the year is out, and the Tories will be remembered in the polling booth as the party that cut firefighters' pay just after their heroic actions in London.

[gluteustothemaximus]

I guess they see it as a bargain. The pay rises would have cost 4 billion (I think), and as they bought DUP votes for 1.5 billion, they're doing alright jack, quick pull that ladder up

They even cheered when they won the vote. Makes me sick. 🤢

Sorry to those who work tirelessly in our public sector. We really appreciate you, even if the government doesn't.

[Hotbot]

Private sector no better off,
, pensions and sick pay much worse in in the private sector too. No 6 mths paid sick leave there.
It's not a race to the bottom but it's not all about the public sector employees . Dh and I are both public sector workers we have friends who are private health care , we are better off though not by much tbh. Their obs are just as stressful too .j

[PookieDo]

It's just falling apart. Goodwill and moral is really so low and as a life long public sector worker it really does break my heart. To be fair the general public do seem to mostly be appreciative

[PookieDo]

I don't think having good sick pay is why people do these jobs. Hopefully people don't have to use it but as nurses are at an exceptionally high risk of back injury, police/firefighters/army at risk of serious physical injury and not to add mental health issues such as stress (work related) in the line of duty it is there as one of the last benefits there could be. And I can't see it being protected for long either

[ghostyslovesheets]

I can't afford a pension and wont retire until I am 67