We must strive to reach beyond our fellow activists

First published in the Morning Star on 15/8/17: The value of many public service workers’ pay has plummeted by £4,000 since 2010. Tens of thousands of jobs have gone from public services in Scotland. The need for services hasn’t gone away but the jobs that provide them have.

Those left behind struggle to carry on with fewer resources. It is sad to see workers who used to pride themselves in their service looking increasingly demoralised. No wonder there is a queue when it comes to voluntary redundancies.

So why aren’t public service workers furious? Why did not enough members even vote in Unison’s Scottish local government pay ballot to reach the Tories’ cynical 50% threshold?

Brain hurts: £900m bankers’ bonus ‘fair’ while £5k cut for police staff ‘good deal'

Justifying £900m in bonuses, the RBS’s Stephen Hester told the BBC yesterday that, “Along with my staff, I want to be treated fairly”. Well, Stephen, so do thousands of police staff in Scotland who are facing up to a £5,000 a year cut in wages which is described by the employers as a ‘good deal’.

Another of those ‘my brain hurts moments’ isn’t it? In order for the country to recover, one of the banks who created the mess while earning huge bucks have to get more bucks as a reward for losing £1.13billion. That is, apparently, being treated ‘fairly’. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-12571381 

On the other hand, the people who suffered from the mess and who deliver essential and efficient police services, are facing a cut of £5,000 on a wage of £25,000. That, according to the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, is ‘a good deal’. http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/politics/plans-to-slash-pay-of-civilian-staff-are-attacked-1.1087172