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.

Public sector is not a much cushier option with "so many benefits". I have gone from 20 years public sector, to the private sector this last year.

Yes, I had a good, average salary, pension. But I also paid 10% of my salary to this. It wasn't "free" like people like to make out. Yeah, I got 20% off at Nandos, but that was literally the extent of my benefits. I negotiated same annual leave in private sector that I had in public sector (because private sector you can negotiate), and sick leave is full pay for 3 months, half pay for three months, so yeah, not as good as public sector. But my salary went up by 50%, I get private medical coverage, I get all my expenses paid (no more paying for even my own stationery. I have a good laptop, extra screens, a good chair to sit in - if I need it and there is a business need, I can have it). I also have a much better work life balance. AND I don't get slagged off by the public for doing my job.

I'm job hunting at the moment @BashirWithTheGoodBeard and I'd do admin at National Min Wage with the perks offered.

I've applied for a few. Fingers crossed for me :)

Fingers crossed indeed! I hope you find something that suits you.

But fabulous and efficient as you no doubt are, you're one person and it is in general an employees market at the moment. We do therefore need to think about what would happen if our solution to this issue is that the people currently doing the job and wanting higher wages should get a better paid role instead.

They really have timed this for maximum disruption.

Photo ID is now required to vote. For anyone without a driving license, passport will be the best thing to use - can't do that if you've sent off your old one and it's stuck in a backlog somewhere.

Good luck to them. A rising tide lifts all boats.

Interesting that some are viewing the work of passport office staff as basic data input, implying not worth much, whilst complaining at them having the audacity to withdraw their services.
I am CS, (not passport office), I haven’t had a pay rise above .25% since 2012. Some years there have been incentives to increase the lower pay grades, whilst good, this is also resulting in the gap in pay narrowing. In not too many years I will be on the same pay scale as my staff if nothing changes. This makes all the years I spent training to “rise through the ranks” pretty pointless. My pension has been messed with, so not worth that much, I will end up on the same benefits I have been administering, assuming they still exist. I may have more days leave, but I can’t always take it and am expected to book it 12 months in advance. Nothing from Nando’s in my department (thank god!).
If the passport office are to go on strike, of course this is the time to do it - strikes are about causing disruption/capturing attention.
For what it’s worth - I was finally sent home from my office in Feb 2021 - nearly 12 months after ‘everyone’ else. They subsequently closed the building. I don’t have an office to return to - I am expected to pop into a new building miles away, hope there is a spare desk and that the (ancient) IT works. We have been mismanaged by a series of knee-jerk, ill thought out decisions higher up the food chain, but it’s still somehow “our” fault. I support their decision to stike.

🙄

They have been offered a pay rise of 2%, whilst inflation is around 10-11%.

As anyone with a rudimentary understanding of maths can tell you, that amounts to a real terms pay cut.

So, even if it might be an admin style roll, please could you explain why they deserve a real terms pay cut?

Also, I'm in Local Government admin and there's nothing basic about it. It's not just filing and making cups of tea. We're the ones that keep these massive government organisations working. We have to have knowledge of all sorts of legislation relating to our roles. I imagine it's the same in the passport office and am rolling my eyes so much at you.

Huge misunderstanding of why they are striking and the long term impact. If we had no strikes we would never get any improvements. We only got a 5 day week through strikes. There would be no equal pay apart from strikes. Holiday pay and most workers rights are thanks to the unions. People make huge sacrifices to strike (it's partly why people never forget those who break a picket line but still benefit from the strike).

Seems like anybody can strike these days 🙄

Out of curiosity, has anyone who works in the private sector received or know anyone who has received a pay rise in line with inflation? I don't know or know of a single person who has - either no increase (with a grunt to be grateful you still have a job) or a 2-3% increase seems to be the norm in my circles.

No, I work in the private sector. I can negotiate a pay rise with my manager though when I feel that I deserve one, which I have done this year, public sector can't.

Yes my husband is private sector and got 10%. He also gets more holidays than me in the public sector. I got 1.8% and very much support the strikes.
The passport office can't keep staff as they are one of the worst paid CS departments.

Public sector workers aren’t just given any pension, final salary or otherwise we all pay into our pension plans out of our wages (I’ve been a public sector worker for nearly 20 years and my pension isn’t final salary).
In my time as a public sector worker I have had probably a total of two weeks sickness so less than one day for each year I have worked there. My holiday entitlement has built up during my employment. I’ve worked extremely hard for my <£25k pa job and have voted in favour of every pay offer I have received in most cases going against the unions recommendation. But forget the people actually doing the job, trying to do their best despite repeated cuts and take away the benefits that they have earned over years because you’re anti union and your husband gets 25 days leave.

Well, from my personal financial perspective, if everyone who strikes gets a pay rise, my taxes will go up to pay for it. Dh and I are both (poorly) paid from the public purse with no option to strike. There won't be enough to give us pay rises if every other sector throws their toys out of the pram to get what they want.

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.

You might be but I hardly imagine this applies to the bloody passport office!

A provisional driver’s licence is cheaper or voters can get a free voter authority certificate so my suggestion would be to apply for the free certificate when you send off your passport just in case if you’re worried.

Do you honestly think that people would strike so they can have a jolly (in which you are implying) getting by on a strikers' fund?

Do you think nurses, teachers and lecturers, barristers are doing the same? I am upset for all people who feel the need to strike because what a decision, it takes guts in my opinion to lose wages in this climate.

Whatever the reasons, there are problems so deep that people feel the need to lose money and to stand up for each other. I guess if you are basic enough to think that it means people are just looking for some chill out time then good luck to you, you must have a really blessed life...

We got our passports back this week
One was a lost one, one was due to a renewal
One took about 2 weeks , the other 3 weeks
Really quick considering the post office woman told us it will be about 10 weeks

I have been a public sector worker most of my life. The old you get an amzing pension is a thing of the past - that change during the financial crash. yes we may get good holidays but we also get stagnant wages and department cuts that means doing 2 jobs instead of one. I haev had real term cuts to my salary the last 6 years.

Just horrible horrible times to deal with. And no one wants to strike, absolutely fkng no one.

they must get a fair amount of abuse thrown at them when there are delays due to being short staffed.

My guess is that it will be sorted out but plans will be put in place to outsource the processing of passports, possibly abroad

As a result, mass redundancies in the UK 😳😳

I've been notified of an across the board 8% rise this year, not quite in line with inflation, but I had a 19% rise last year to keep up with market rate for my role so I can't complain. I also get 35 days holiday, 6 months full sick pay, and medical benefits in the private sector, and so do my team including our admin. Our staff turnover, and therefore recruitment and training costs, are low which helps the business to afford it.

I doubt there will be q high percentage of staff who can afford to / want to go 5 weeks without pay?