has ended after their union agreed to fresh talks over pay. As I suspected, the goverment steps in and a High Court injunction was granted against the Prison Officers' Association (POA) but many members initially refused to go back to work. The government had called the strike illegal and unjustified. It denied it had failed to address concerns about pay and falling morale among prison staff. Twenty Thousand staff obviously didn't think it was "unjustified" The POA said the government had failed to deliver on "promise after promise" and it decided to call the strike without prior warning to avoid attracting a court order. Again, this sounds very familiar!
What angers me most about this is that once again, the government can pull strings and make something illegal. This strike concerns pay, which, let's face it, it's what we go to work for. I know some work for free but "fresh air" doesn't put food on the table and when a pay rise is rejected or is frozen below the rate of inflation your wages are worth less and less. But, why am I telling you this, dear reader, you already know this.
If the prison or police service was the London Underground we would have had our 5% pay increase and 55 days off a year with bonuses and if we didn't get what we want we would strike until we got it.
But apart from it being on the news occassionally, did anyone actually notice they went on strike? So a few prisoners didn't get their 15 minute walk around a yard and the slop bucket was over flowing for a bit longer than they wanted but lets look at the facts, these are prisons after all, not holiday camps. So if Billy Burglar cannot get to his PS 3 or XBox for his allocated time is he going to sue for breach of his Human Rights? Best bet is, don't end up in there in the first place!
If the police "service" cannot get their wage rise will the general public back us? They moan and groan about the Underground banging on about wages but will they look at us as "just being greedy"?
As I write this, 13,645 people have signed the online Number 10 Downing Street petition. The deadline for the petition is February next year. Yes, many of these will be police officers signing this but from what I can see the general public do appear to be in support. The vast majority of people I have spoken to about it think that it's outrageous what the government may do with the pay and they understand what job we do.
......but will the general public support us if we suddenly went on strike???
What angers me most about this is that once again, the government can pull strings and make something illegal. This strike concerns pay, which, let's face it, it's what we go to work for. I know some work for free but "fresh air" doesn't put food on the table and when a pay rise is rejected or is frozen below the rate of inflation your wages are worth less and less. But, why am I telling you this, dear reader, you already know this.
If the prison or police service was the London Underground we would have had our 5% pay increase and 55 days off a year with bonuses and if we didn't get what we want we would strike until we got it.
But apart from it being on the news occassionally, did anyone actually notice they went on strike? So a few prisoners didn't get their 15 minute walk around a yard and the slop bucket was over flowing for a bit longer than they wanted but lets look at the facts, these are prisons after all, not holiday camps. So if Billy Burglar cannot get to his PS 3 or XBox for his allocated time is he going to sue for breach of his Human Rights? Best bet is, don't end up in there in the first place!
If the police "service" cannot get their wage rise will the general public back us? They moan and groan about the Underground banging on about wages but will they look at us as "just being greedy"?
As I write this, 13,645 people have signed the online Number 10 Downing Street petition. The deadline for the petition is February next year. Yes, many of these will be police officers signing this but from what I can see the general public do appear to be in support. The vast majority of people I have spoken to about it think that it's outrageous what the government may do with the pay and they understand what job we do.
......but will the general public support us if we suddenly went on strike???
2 comments:
I think people are too selfish when it comes to losing something themselves so yes I think the general public would be outraged if any or all of the police forces went on strike.
If I am honest I would be more worried than outraged, wondering what I would do if I needed their help,an example of a very selfish view, but true all the same...but the difference is I would still be in support simply because although I am not an officer myself I am well aware and grateful for all of what the officers encounter and have to deal with on a daily basis albeit from a distance.
I think too many people live with the "ignorance is bliss" attitude. It's a shame someone can't open their eyes to the facts and reality of just one day in the life of a police officer let alone a lifetime of upholding the law then maybe they would be more willing to support than sneer.
Hi,
Nice post. Join the ranks of the most respected people in your community and become a police officer. Never again will you stay seated in a chair all day stapling mounds of documents. Never again will you get bored to tears copying documents that do not really mean that much to you.
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