National Rail Strikes June- I Am Furious

[gordiescotland1]

I am furious there are 2 proposed national rail strikes in june one of them over the time I am due to go down to my nephews confirmation. I have booked and paid for hotels and theatre tickets now I will have to go by coach overnight or I will lose quite a bit of money. How dare unions hold this country to ransom and disrupt plans bring back Margaret Thatcher she would never have allowed this God I hated that witch but she knew how to sort out the unions. Strikes should be illegal. Staff are bloody lucky they have jobs millions not so lucky. No sympathy for their cause whatsoever nothing but contempt for the plans they have ruined. Is there nothing David Cameron can do I know hes as weak as dishwater at the best of times but Maggie wouldnt have put up with this.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-32920794
Apart from my rant what is everyones take on these strikes

[sp1814]

The only strikes that ever affect me are when the London tube workers walk out, and by 'affect', I mean positively. It means I can work from home.

They were supposed to go on strike on Tuesday this week, and called it off at the last minute.

That really ticked me off.

But back to the question - strikes simply don't work any more. They haven't worked for 30 years. Unions MUST know this. All a strike does is annoy people. Furthermore, where people DO find an alternative to the service which is suspended, there's the likelihood that a small percentage may continue using that service, thereby reducing future earnings potential.

There needs to be a balance though...without effective representation, workers can be exploited by business owners. I mean, hands up who would want to work on a zero hours contract?

[mushroom25]

//I mean, hands up who would want to work on a zero hours contract? //

it's not all bad for everybody, altho' for those whose hourly rate plus uncertainty, it does equal unsustainable. most of my company's drivers are effectively on zero hours contracts, but because of the stigma attached to that, what the company actually asks of them is to commit to 20 shifts a year. there's no shortage of work and the drivers could work full time if they wished, those that do could earn £35k easily. but most are semi retired or are using the hours to "fill in", so it suits them to be able to work when it suits them.

[Zacs-Master]

What a cop out Jim. I gave you the opportunity to explain your standing on Unions and you bottled it. 'Not quite sure what I want to say'? You seemed to be chomping at the bit to say your piece.

[naomi24]

Jim, so when you said a couple of days ago that the result of the election 'sucks', you didn't mean it? I must confess that having read several of your posts on the subject of the election I gained the distinct impression that you wanted Labour to win.

[jim360]

I did give my opinion ZM -- not in as much detail as I might have, but I did give it. I do not agree with the way trade unions have behaved -- certainly not for the last five or six years, and for that matter well beyond that as well. I don't think I can be any clearer than that. See my post at 11.29... "in fact I seriously dislike unions... they've lost the plot lately...", etc.

Naomi -- I am not thrilled by the result of a Tory majority. That doesn't mean I wanted a Labour one instead. I had doubts about their leadership -- too closely associated with the side of Labour that lost in 2010. I don't think I ever explicitly stated what I wanted, beyond saying that I was voting against the SNP and hence was hoping that they would not have much influence in parliament.

So far as I can tell, the only possible reason for saying that I must have wanted a Labour government is because I am not keen on a Tory one. But there were more possible outcomes from the election. Only now have I said what I wanted, and the answer is pretty much summarised by "I don't really know". But it hardly matters what I wanted now.

[naomi24]

Jim, so the result of election 'sucks' but you don't know what you would have wanted instead. Right.

[TWR]

You are working for a large company & get bullied, where do you go?

You are accused by a company for misconduct, who can you turn to?

I used to carry Ale to Whitbreads Luton many years ago & remember the Unions going on strike half way through unloading the trailer, the knew which part to leave loaded ( The part above the PIN so you could not drop the trailer, to my point, I do agree with a union for legal help & support, what else have you got? & no, I do not want to go back to the 80s.

[jim360]

Yes, pretty much, Naomi. I guess most people will think that doesn't make sense, and they could well be right, but there is some logic to it. Neither of the main parties had convinced me that they had the right ideas to run the country. Labour's leadership was fundamentally the wrong one, I thought, so I can't say I was keen on them being in charge again; and I've not been convinced that the Tories have been going in the right direction either. Since these were the only two parties with any realistic change of leading a majority, it doesn't leave a lot of options. Also the Greens are living in an economic fantasy land, the SNP are too nationalist, UKIP are too right-wing... and it turned out that the Lib Dems were electorally finished more than anyone had realised.

So, basically, I didn't really have any option that really attracted me. So if I was hoping for any result then it was a hung parliament, leading to a coalition of some description. Hopefully not involving the SNP, but beyond that I didn't know what I wanted. I don't think that's an unreasonable position.

[naomi24]

Right ...

[jim360]

Whatever you may think, Naomi, it's a completely reasonable position to be unsure of what you want, but sure of what you do not.

[mushroom25]

//strikes simply don't work any more.//

not sure of your thinking on that one, SP. in this instance, Notwork Rail signallers and electrical control staff will be on strike; management grades might be able to provide a degree of cover but essentially train operators won't be able to run trains over most of the network. this will mean that the private train companies will receive heavy discounts for their access charges because effectively access is being denied. this is real money and the amounts are substantial; this strike will hurt the strikers' employers.

[chaptazbru2]

Anything that upsets the tories, is good in my books !

[TWR]

Jesus Chap, don't say that on here, they will send the mafia around to your house, jail you burn your car & house, kill the cat / Dog, empty your bank account & send the money to Kent to help with the influx, please apologise quickly.

[retrocop]

It's gordie who is upset.Not the torys as far as I can see in the title OP. :-)
PS. But he wouldn't be upset if the nasty unions went on strike another day and upset someone else instead.

[Pete65]

I agree, Retrocop.
#And he does not seem to grasp that things can and do interfere with best laid plans.
But you do your best to adapt and get on with it!
Moaning is not a positive step!

[gordiescotland1]

It has really taken the edge of it for me all the stress of trying to get there waiting for these horrible f**** to decide whether to strike or not i might not bother going at all I hate the world

[excelsior-1]

i have said this before - -

while i can sympathise with workers grievances - strikes, in my opinion, are ultimately self defeating

aside from the obvious effect of inconveniencing, upsetting & alienating the general public, they tend to cost the company involved substantial sums in lost revenue - this has the result of leaving even less money in the company coffers with which to offer a settlement to the dispute

[Pete65]

"I hate the world"?
Why don't you make alternative travel plans like many more people will be doing instead of hating us?
Think positively!

[tonyav]

I do not want to go back to the 80s.


Neither do I, TWR. The 70s were much better.

[wolf63]

I used to walk through a picket line when we had a strike. It wasn't at all pleasant but I didn't see the point of striking for money/ I was not in the union. I accept that most people went on strike because they felt that there was no option.

This strike may not happen, there is time. The train workers don't want to lose a days wage and are not doing it for the fun.

I also thought that the strong unions and striking days were over. As a civil servant (DWP) it was a nightmare situation for the customers and for the staff who had to work on the day of the strike, trying to keep the office open and the system running.