On 5 Sep, 12:21, eastender wrote:

This is mainly a failure of a business contract and is not down to unions.

I'm talking about people agreeing to do work for a price, then waiting
until a critical time to demand more money. This happens far too
often, and for what it's worth, I wasn't only talking about unions
here.

So we are to blame.

Well, anyone who accepts this system is to blame. Competitive
tendering is flawed, but I certainly don't pretend to know what the
alternative would be. In many industries, it's clear that there are
backhanders and corruption (I know this first hand as my wife worked
for a contractor that paid quite a lot of money to someone in a very
large London council to win a contract).

Where I live, a bus company has just won a contract from another
operator to run local buses - and paid someone within the other bus
operator to get the application in advance (and then offered a nominal
amount above). From what I'm led to believe, both 'entries' were
virtually identical.

What ridiculous promises or pay rises? The only people in this country who
get ridiculous pay rises are City stockbrokers, CEOs and MPs.

This is what I always seem to see with some unions and their members;
jealousy. "He gets paid more than me.. I want the same". Sorry mate,
but if I want more money I ask for a pay review - or leave and get
another job. You can't demand double pay to 'catch up due to years of
pitiful pay rises' or demand less hours, more leave and so on. Well,
you can ask, but not strike until you get it. Vote with your feet and
things might change.

I'm not an MP, CEO or stockbroker - nor a premier league footballer.
However, while I might envy some of them, I am not going to demand
that I get paid the same because it's in some way unfair. I knew what
my job paid when I signed my contract. My union will step in if I am
wrongfully dismissed or something, not because I'm moaning that
someone in the city just got a £5m bonus.

Jonathan