To think the public sector will get worse under Labour

[MeadowL]

Long term sickness is already nearly double of that in the private sector, aibu to think that this will get even worse under Labour?

https://www.statista.com/statistics/290241/uk-sickness-absence-rate-public-vs-private-sector/

Yeah if it’s so ‘bloated’ how come nothing fucking works?!

Trains, potholes, nhs SEND provision schools, civil service, courts, etc.

’Starved’ public sector is more appropriate.

Wrong quote!

Same

Thats because public service employees are soooo difficult to get rid of. They take the P...SS!
This from someone who's waited 9 months for an effective response from a Civil Service Dept and another whose amended licence took 8 months to return.

Civil servants wouldn't last long in the private sector. They're a drain on society.

Do you really think that issues like that are the fault of individual civil servants?

Honestly, I don't think it'll make a blind bit of difference. Two cheeks of the same arse.

It will become even more bloated and wasteful under labour.

If that were even possible.

I agree whenever I feel peaky I think what would Rishi do. Its the sheer joy he has brought to the world keeps me going.

Not everyone who works in a council is civil service

Over 90% of our budget is spent in children’s and adults social care

how the fuck do you get that less ‘bloated’

OK. I’ll bite.

I also work for a Conservative held council. I work hybrid, 2 days in, 3 from home. Around two thirds of the building stock is being put on the market to plug budget holes, so this will be the way from now on.

I like my job, I have all the professional qualifications I need to do it and enjoy the CPD I do to keep up my chartered membership. It’s technical, tricky and important, all good stuff.

We’ve had vacancy control now for 5+ years so I’m now doing the work that was done by three different people 10 years ago. At times I have felt overwhelmed and very stressed about the decisions I’m having to make when I don’t feel I’ve had the time or support to fully consider the issues.

I really like my colleagues, but we’re OLD! It would be much nicer to have some young people on the team, get a different perspective and energy about the place. But we’re not recruiting graduates, the salaries aren’t competitive and no-one has capacity to train/mentor anyway.

The point about us all being codgers is that I looked at your graph. Absences in private an public sectors seem to track up and down and are a steady 1.5% higher in public, yes? Well maybe there are other factors at play here? Maybe age is a factor? Maybe we are the ones on the long waiting lists stuck off work while we’d rather be in? Maybe its because there are generally more women working in public sector and we keep doing ridiculous things like getting pregnant with complications, having hysterectomies or other such things?

I don’t have the stats. I’m just suggesting that ‘lazy and bloated’ might be the wrong avenue here. More research required. If you are actually interested in solving the problem of course

But would they call in sick if they weren't paid during 'sick' leave?

Absolutely. The shite some people on here talk around this election is quite breathtaking.

But for the record, as someone who worked the first 16 years of my adult working life under the Tories, the Labour government which came in from 97 TRANSFORMED the public sector for those of us who worked in it. And there are stats and graphs to show just how much education, the NHS, etc benefited from significantly better funding.

Are you seriously suggesting that people shouldn't be entitled to paid sick leave?

Some posters are really wishing for Dickensian level QoL and tearful the Tories won’t get a chance to finish us all.

I swear to god there could be one hospital open for an entire region and the people like the OP would still be bleating about the public sector being “bloated”.

At least provide some stats about how well funded hospitals, schools, community care and mental health services are to back up your assertion. And a generic statement about middle managers is not sufficient.

Don't worry, Streeting is going to ask NHS staff to work longer and pay them less for overtime. But he has a red tie on so this is warm and cuddly proposal. And will definitely work.

The public sector has a real problem with low productivity - that's always been the case. 49% of public workers are union members, compared to only 12% in the private sector. Nothing wrong with being a union member, obviously. But let's also acknowledge that 96% of days lost to strikes are in the public sector (year to May '23).

Obviously all the Tory cuts lead to more people taking time off with stress-related illness because of higher workloads. Which is odd when you realise that the size of the Civil Service payroll has increased by 100,000 in the past 8 years. Headcount has gone up by 22,000 in just the last year! Our taxes pay for more than 10,000 state workers in roles of equality, diversity and inclusion. Again, fair enough - someone has to monitor all those diversity quesionnaires that most of us refuse to complete. And no one minds the cost of those workers which is north of half a billion pounds.

Despite that near perfect state of affairs, I'm going to suggest that some things could be improved. I'm also realistic in saying that the Tories haven't distinguished themselves when it comes to making a noticeable difference. And I don't think Keir Starmer will either.

A ridiculous OP. I am a Civil Servant, I work with highly trained people, quite a few of whom are over 50. Some of my colleagues have had cancer or other serious illness and survived. They had sick pay and come back to work. In the private sector they would probably have been sacked or managed out.

I don’t think any of my colleagues are malingering. Today someone in my team who has Covid is doing a full days work at home.

I am proud to work for an organisation that treats staff properly. I don’t want to go to Tesco or wherever and catch a virus or lurgy from some poor person who should be at home in bed. I hope that people with serious illness don’t have to worry about money wherever they work.

Sick leave has gone way up because people are waiting a long time for NHS treatment. Public sector has an older workforce, so more people waiting for needed operations and treatment.
It is why good healthcare is so important for a strong economy.

Your point about someone at your place working from home with Covid is a good point Zeeze. I’ve had a quick look at my sick days and I don’t think the OPs horror at her council’s officers working from home being related to low productivity stacks up. Anecdotal of course, but I have had fewer sick days post-Covid than pre. Horrible snotty colds that weren’t catastrophic but kept me out of the office before are now dealt with from home, I have the resources now to log on and keep on top of things. Much better.

And just to add. I worked like a bloody dog during the lockdowns. No furlough for us and so much more to do!

I seriously doubt they all work from home.

Anyway councils have been forced to sell off offices so some people need to work from home. This is due to cuts by government.

No, he’s asking them if they want to.

He isn’t forcing them.

And it’s for the nation’s good

What would you propose then?

I love Wes Streeting,

It’s 4.4 days per person per year in the public sector. Not that terrible when I think of all the people who are off very long term with cancer, stroke etc skewing the average.

Blackhorse32 said not all council staff work from home. This absolutely true, and by and large those working out where they can be seen are often the lowest grades who then take the brunt of the ‘you’re all lazy and bloated’ comments. Some of the things people shout (and worse, bottles of piss is not uncommon) at the road workers is horrifying.