To tell you that Passport Office staff will strike for 5 weeks?

[Workyworky]

I support them.

Just thought I'd let people know to get their applications in ASAP.

Wow @Slushynana those are some lovely perks! Very envious x

It is to me too but I thought I'd give her a chance to reconsider her goading.

You would have to be seriously thick to renew your passport now if you don't have to! You risk having a perfectly valid passport sitting in a closed Passport Office all summer.

Aw fuck it. Just about to book a holiday to Greece but it needs to be valid for 6 months doesn't it?

I’m not alone in thinking spurious

🤷‍♀️

I do not support

Uhh we need to travel end of August (family reasons) but my baby isn't due until the end of June/ beginning of July. Hoping we can get a same day one done then 😬

Nightmare. We were so lucky dd’s ran out in Feb so already done. Just.

Really glad I got my baby's passport done ASAP!

I think so - I'm in similar boat we haven't yet booked but dates we could go wouldn't have 6 months on mine.

So was thinking of sending it in soon - last year it got insanely long wait with one of two which we sent to get renewed.

However as I don't drive it's only photo ID I have and my GP insist on photo Id for picking up my monthly prescription. So I don't want it lost in a closed office or hugely delayed.

Can you still get same day ones - pretty sure you can't for children anyway can you?? I need to do a baby's first passport and also renew a child's

They will be being paid by the union. I too have been on strike, 12 days in March but because our dept has zero effect on the general public no one gives a stuff. As I mentioned in other posts my salary should have risen £12k to keep up with inflation- it's gone up by £5k. Our staffing levels have halved, work increased, hours increased, redundancy terms altered and pensions messed with. I will be leaving the CS as soon as I can get another job (can earn £1 an hour more stacking shelves in Lidl so I shall be applying there first)

Good for them.

This is a genuine question. Where is the money for all of these rises supposed to be diverted from? Covid was crippling to our economy and Brexit didn’t help so we have to recoup the losses from that which has caused interest rates to rise etc and increased the cost of living. But it’s not a magic porridge pot, I understand how a balance sheet works and you can’t keep taking out without redressing the balance, so where is it supposed to be funded from?

History has shown if you overtax individuals or companies they will just move their funds overseas so that won’t help. I’m genuinely asking.

The basic workers are not well paid, they have moderate wages.
Why in this country do some want their fellow countryfolk on the bare minimum? I want a strong economy with decent pay. Is that really so strange

Sorry but I disagree with this sentiment. Basic jobs should in my view be paid a basic salary.

I supported the teacher strikes and I support NHS strikes because I feel that they deserve more money and better conditions.

I cannot imagine that working in the passport office is all that difficult. Is the job that much more than data entry?

There are times when people should strike, but there are also situations where people should look for a different job. If you want more money go and do something that requires a higher level of skill!

I support the hiring of more staff in order to reduce the current workforces workload, but I don’t support the strike for the other reasons listed.

I've just applied for an adult renewal, a child's that had lapsed and a brand new child passport
Adult 1 week
Child 2nd pp 10 days
New child op 2 weeks 1 day

I applied on line I was very impressed but if you need one I'd get applying now!

It's a bit of a pisser, but I would imagine anyone who is sensible, and has more than an ounce of common sense, would NOT have booked any holiday abroad before sending for (and receiving) a new passport - if their old one expires before they go abroad (or does not have enough months left on it.) Anyone who has booked for this summer - May to August for example - who has not sent for their passport yet is incredibly imprudent.

We all know now that you MUST have 3 months on your passport to travel to Europe, and 6 months outside Europe, so anyone whose passport ran out/runs out in 2023, would be incredibly silly and irresponsible to not have sent for their new passport in late 2022/very early 2023 (like before the end of January,) if they're going abroad this year.

DD's 10 year passport ran out at the end of February 2023, and she wanted to go on holiday to Iceland and Lapland in November 2022. She sent for a new passport in July 2022 - 7 months before her passport ran out, and 4 months before she was due to go. Got it after 4 weeks. (Then she booked the holiday.) Yeah she 'lost' 7 months on it, but when you have to have 3-6 months left on it to travel anywhere abroad, it's pretty much a given that you will lose roughly 3-6 months on your passport, if you want to go away within 6 months of its end date.

Lose 7 months off a 10 year passport, or risk losing your holiday? I know which one I would prefer!

I guess they're threatening such a huge strike to get it settled before they go on strike.🤷🏻‍♀️

I might put my renewal in now, I think it expires 2027.

I don't know whether I support them or not as I don't know what their pay/T&C/workload is like.

BUT ... bandwagon springs to mind.

Join the club. Dh and I are both in industries that are notoriously underfunded but doesn't mean I agree you can hold the country to ransom and throw your toys out of the pram. I agree with striking for policy and working conditions but not pay. I think its unfair when everyone in the public sector deserves a pay rise.

Why is it so hard for many to sympathise with those striking. It's not something anyone wants to do. We strike for better pay.

Sigh as a benefit assessor I’m on the side of the passport staff. They are not just admin jobs and are not something anyone can do.

it took me 5 years to learn all the regs in relation to benefits. I currently earn £11.50 an hour… for that my team have halved in the last 5 years as people have found better paid work elsewhere and we can’t recruit with our unattractive salary. The new starters are on minimum wage. New starters for years have not been able to get a final salary pension.

we are not just pen pushers who press a button, we are there in times of people’s need. We are mental health workers when people ring all day crying about the mess they are in. We take the abuse day in and day out as people thing we are the ones who make the rules in relation to what we can offer in assistance. At least half of us have to top up our wages with the same benefits we administer. But we do it because we care about the people in our communities.

If the job’s that simple the government will get the army to do it.

oh flaps, I only sent mine off last week

I cannot imagine that working in the passport office is all that difficult. Is the job that much more than data entry?

There are times when people should strike, but there are also situations where people should look for a different job. If you want more money go and do something that requires a higher level of skill!

The flipside to this argument is, do you know that there are sufficient other people willing to do this basic admin job for the current wage, in this employment market?

Who are you, the thread police? Jesus christ. And what would her punishment be if she chooses not to "reconsider" as you so kindly allowed?

😂