How Would You Like Your Robbery - Daylight or Crepuscular?

[steepholm]

The Government's approach to the public sector pension dispute is pretty clearly one of divide and rule. First, it tried to take the sting from last month's strike by letting those workers within 10 years of retirement keep the right to take their occupational pension at 60. That seems not to have worked. So now they're offering a better deal to lower paid workers (using the NHS as a trial run), but making sure it's paid for by giving an even worse one to the higher paid.

If only they'd carry this principle, that those who can afford to pay more should support those who are worse off, beyond the down and dirty tactics of an industrial dispute and into their wider economic policy! Instead, this is the same government that wants to abolish the 50p income tax rate - and we all know about the spiralling of high pay generally.

Personally, I think this wheeze stands even less chance of working: even if all the porters are back at work, a hospital without doctors isn't going to function - and doctors have shown themselves far better negotiators than the Government, ever since the foundation of the NHS.

If they tried it in schools, now, it might have been interesting...

Comments

[fjm.livejournal.com]

And I also want to know what they mean by "higher paid". I earn 50k a year. It's very nice thank you, except that I am now over the higher pay tax threshold which is set at the ludicrously low 40 something, so that in practice I take home about 34k. Still very nice but comfortable, not rich. When Ireland decided to tax the higher paid they pitched it rather low. We suddenly found Edward's wages cut by 10% with a 10% tax hike on top, It's taken all year to recover and we are still not quite there. I cannot afford the hike they are proposing.

[craftyailz.livejournal.com]

Wouldn't you think they'd be trying to force other pensions to be as GOOD as the public sector ones instead of making the public sector ones as BAD as others.

Seems a bit cock-eyed to me.

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