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Post by servernaside on Jun 15, 2021 9:56:13 GMT 1
Still not quite sure whether you consider this good news though, that we have many people who are now seeing an increase in their wage (and looking to those numbers, including those who are below or around the average wage). I thought this would be seen as a good thing. Of course it is good news for those that benefit but as detailed by someone else above there are repercussions which means that is not totally good. It still doesn't alleviate the fact that there will be thousands of jobs left unfilled in the hospitality industry which would have been filled by those that are now forbidden. I wonder when someone is going to fill your half-empty glass.
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Post by SeanBroseley on Jun 15, 2021 10:23:16 GMT 1
With fire and rehire rife the idea that power is shifting to the employee doesn't really have legs.
The demand for labour time is a derived demand for the end product. Even on those GCSE economics terms there is limited scope.
May be there are a lot of businesses that exist only because of the subsidy of poor pay and unguaranteed hours and it is time for them to go. A general raise in the wages share in the sector would probably do that in fairly short order.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 15, 2021 11:22:50 GMT 1
Of course it is good news for those that benefit but as detailed by someone else above there are repercussions which means that is not totally good. It still doesn't alleviate the fact that there will be thousands of jobs left unfilled in the hospitality industry which would have been filled by those that are now forbidden. I wonder when someone is going to fill your half-empty glass. Well, you obviously are unable to see through your rose tinted spectacles
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Post by Deleted on Jun 15, 2021 11:24:46 GMT 1
With fire and rehire rife the idea that power is shifting to the employee doesn't really have legs. I would agree if there were not cases of people being re hired then immediately moving to better paid jobs, British Gas are now having a major rethink and overhaul since this policy was implemented as they have lost so many staff they are finding it hard to carry out contractual obligations.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 15, 2021 11:28:48 GMT 1
Of course it is good news for those that benefit but as detailed by someone else above there are repercussions which means that is not totally good. It still doesn't alleviate the fact that there will be thousands of jobs left unfilled in the hospitality industry which would have been filled by those that are now forbidden. I also have a solution for filling these jobs........ Cut benefits so that it is less lucrative to sit at home rather than go and do a days work. With increase in wages well in excess of NMW, and in lots of cases above Living wage, everyone is a winner eh......
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Post by SeanBroseley on Jun 15, 2021 11:45:07 GMT 1
Of course it is good news for those that benefit but as detailed by someone else above there are repercussions which means that is not totally good. It still doesn't alleviate the fact that there will be thousands of jobs left unfilled in the hospitality industry which would have been filled by those that are now forbidden. I also have a solution for filling these jobs........ Cut benefits so that it is less lucrative to sit at home rather than go and do a days work. With increase in wages well in excess of NMW, and in lots of cases above Living wage, everyone is a winner eh...... Economies are complex systems. This means that they have emergent properties Which means this: en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/EmergenceOne consequence is that in an economy (rather than at the level of one individual looking for employment) is that factor incomes (profit and its constituent parts, and wages) do not reflect scarcity. So the simple idea - that is intuitively correct for an economy because it is correct for an individual - of supply curves increasing as prices increase intersecting with a demand curve that decreases with price, bringing an equilibrium position rarely, if ever, works. Sometimes people will advocate these solutions in this way but do not believe them. So, for example, if there is an upward pressure on wages in a low-paying sector reducing benefits is irrelevant. Other people's labour time is the greatest renewable resource available to humanity. It is too often available for people who take no responsibility for its renewal.
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Post by venceremos on Jun 15, 2021 11:56:00 GMT 1
Of course it is good news for those that benefit but as detailed by someone else above there are repercussions which means that is not totally good. It still doesn't alleviate the fact that there will be thousands of jobs left unfilled in the hospitality industry which would have been filled by those that are now forbidden. I also have a solution for filling these jobs........ Cut benefits so that it is less lucrative to sit at home rather than go and do a days work. With increase in wages well in excess of NMW, and in lots of cases above Living wage, everyone is a winner eh...... Cut benefits? How many food banks will be enough for you? The unemployment stats mask the effects of insecure employment, people out of work but unable to claim benefits, people notionally in work but on zero hours contracts etc. Your Tebbit-like perspective belongs in the 1980s.
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Post by servernaside on Jun 15, 2021 11:59:09 GMT 1
I wonder when someone is going to fill your half-empty glass. Well, you obviously are unable to see through your rose tinted spectacles These are infinitely preferable to your blindfold.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 15, 2021 12:13:20 GMT 1
I also have a solution for filling these jobs........ Cut benefits so that it is less lucrative to sit at home rather than go and do a days work. With increase in wages well in excess of NMW, and in lots of cases above Living wage, everyone is a winner eh...... Cut benefits? How many food banks will be enough for you? The unemployment stats mask the effects of insecure employment, people out of work but unable to claim benefits, people notionally in work but on zero hours contracts etc. Your Tebbit-like perspective belongs in the 1980s. Superb liberal answer, but please explain why there are record vacancies available but we have so many unemployed?
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Post by Deleted on Jun 15, 2021 13:08:45 GMT 1
Well, you obviously are unable to see through your rose tinted spectacles These are infinitely preferable to your blindfold. Please tell me what I am missing if that is true. Perhaps I cannot see the failings of this Brexit led incompetent government. This is the only reason why they are in power and it is your fault that you have elected a set of sleazy liars and all the decent politicians from left, right and centre have been sidelined because they deign to have slightly differing views.
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Post by servernaside on Jun 15, 2021 13:11:26 GMT 1
These are infinitely preferable to your blindfold. Please tell me what I am missing if that is true. Perhaps I cannot see the failings of this Brexit led incompetent government. This is the only reason why they are in power and it is your fault that you have elected a set of sleazy liars and all the decent politicians from left, right and centre have been sidelined because they deign to have slightly differing views Whatever pit of misery you live in, I feel sorry for you.
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Post by salop27 on Jun 15, 2021 13:36:06 GMT 1
I think every government the UK has ever had has been classed as incompetent.
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Post by venceremos on Jun 15, 2021 15:19:57 GMT 1
Cut benefits? How many food banks will be enough for you? The unemployment stats mask the effects of insecure employment, people out of work but unable to claim benefits, people notionally in work but on zero hours contracts etc. Your Tebbit-like perspective belongs in the 1980s. Superb liberal answer, but please explain why there are record vacancies available but we have so many unemployed? ONS figures show unemployment and job vacancies at broadly the same levels as in 2017. Don't understand your 'record vacancies' point either, because the ONS show 758k average job vacancies in the most recent quarter compared to 864k in 2018. In that time, the number of emergency food parcels distributed by the Trussell Trust has doubled. How do you explain that? Perhaps you think people prefer the food bank to shopping for themselves. I'd suggest low pay and inadequate benefits are the reason, so your idea of cutting benefits is hardly going to help, is it? You also overlook that one in three UK households of working age receive benefits in some form, rising to one in two when child benefit is included. So 'cutting benefits' would reduce the income of between a third and a half of all working age households, not just the unemployed, as you seem to think with your Tebbit blinkers on. How would that benefit the economy? It's an economic answer, not a particularly liberal one.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 15, 2021 15:20:28 GMT 1
Please tell me what I am missing if that is true. Perhaps I cannot see the failings of this Brexit led incompetent government. This is the only reason why they are in power and it is your fault that you have elected a set of sleazy liars and all the decent politicians from left, right and centre have been sidelined because they deign to have slightly differing views Whatever pit of misery you live in, I feel sorry for you. I find it incredible that you are oblivious to what is going on...or, worse still, can see it and condone the ineptitude of this administration.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 15, 2021 15:25:53 GMT 1
I think every government the UK has ever had has been classed as incompetent. This one is a leader by far. Just watched a documentary aired last night about Northern Ireland and it was largely due to the word of the much maligned John Major that the Good Friday Agreement was signed. Now this bunch of n'er do wells risk everything that, by and large Tory governments, achieved in this area.
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Post by frankwellshrews on Jun 15, 2021 16:28:41 GMT 1
Cut benefits? How many food banks will be enough for you? The unemployment stats mask the effects of insecure employment, people out of work but unable to claim benefits, people notionally in work but on zero hours contracts etc. Your Tebbit-like perspective belongs in the 1980s. Superb liberal answer, but please explain why there are record vacancies available but we have so many unemployed? To state the bleeding obvious, it does depend on what the vacancies are and who's out of work; can't fit square pegs into round holes.
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Post by staffordshrew on Jun 15, 2021 16:42:56 GMT 1
With fire and rehire rife the idea that power is shifting to the employee doesn't really have legs. I would agree if there were not cases of people being re hired then immediately moving to better paid jobs, British Gas are now having a major rethink and overhaul since this policy was implemented as they have lost so many staff they are finding it hard to carry out contractual obligations. Good, serves them right for trying to pull a fast one on once loyal employees.
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Post by sheltonsalopian on Jun 15, 2021 16:55:13 GMT 1
As with everything "Brexit" we need to make sure that we take into account the pandemic and the impact that is having on certain things rather than the UK leaving the EU (as in, we can not be sure what is having an impact on such things and to what degree). And of course it is still very much early days, we don't know the real true impact and we won't for some time. But that said, this for sure is something that should be kept an eye on... Brexit drives up wages by ending free movementIt will be interesting to see how this plays out. Because if this is indeed the case, you can certainly understand why the claims of others being selfish was a two way street when it came to the referendum. Not definitive for sure. But something to consider when looking to the impact of Brexit. I could be completely wrong here but I'm pretty sure this is what's happened: Imagine I give you a list of numbers to represent wages 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100. The average is 55 What has happened is the jobs paying 10 and 20 are not filled, so now the list is 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100. The average is 65. IT's not that the wages have gone up, they are not being earned so excluded from the sums. It's the lowest paying jobs that aren't being filled due to no cheap labour anymore that's "theoretically" driving up wages, but I think the truth is a little different.
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Post by servernaside on Jun 15, 2021 23:51:46 GMT 1
Whatever pit of misery you live in, I feel sorry for you. I find it incredible that you are oblivious to what is going on...or, worse still, can see it and condone the ineptitude of this administration. I think you have some growing up to do.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2021 6:57:31 GMT 1
Superb liberal answer, but please explain why there are record vacancies available but we have so many unemployed? To state the bleeding obvious, it does depend on what the vacancies are and who's out of work; can't fit square pegs into round holes. To state the bleeding obvious, many people have had to make there square peg fit round holes…. A job is a bloody job… it pays bills and gives you independence….. just because you think you should be the Next CEO of a multi billion pound company, and you don’t fancy pulling pints to make ends meet…. Tough….
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Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2021 7:53:31 GMT 1
I find it incredible that you are oblivious to what is going on...or, worse still, can see it and condone the ineptitude of this administration. I think you have some growing up to do. Instead of trying to deflect by kind of abuse, so which is it? Oblivious or condoning? My money is on the latter which is shameful.
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Post by stuttgartershrew on Jun 16, 2021 8:27:15 GMT 1
As with everything "Brexit" we need to make sure that we take into account the pandemic and the impact that is having on certain things rather than the UK leaving the EU (as in, we can not be sure what is having an impact on such things and to what degree). And of course it is still very much early days, we don't know the real true impact and we won't for some time. But that said, this for sure is something that should be kept an eye on... Brexit drives up wages by ending free movementIt will be interesting to see how this plays out. Because if this is indeed the case, you can certainly understand why the claims of others being selfish was a two way street when it came to the referendum. Not definitive for sure. But something to consider when looking to the impact of Brexit. I could be completely wrong here but I'm pretty sure this is what's happened: Imagine I give you a list of numbers to represent wages 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100. The average is 55 What has happened is the jobs paying 10 and 20 are not filled, so now the list is 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100. The average is 65. IT's not that the wages have gone up, they are not being earned so excluded from the sums. It's the lowest paying jobs that aren't being filled due to no cheap labour anymore that's "theoretically" driving up wages, but I think the truth is a little different. Perhaps. But I suspect what we say "not filled" I would be surprised if that would mean completely. Perhaps more information will come out as we move forward.
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Post by sheltonsalopian on Jun 16, 2021 8:41:55 GMT 1
I could be completely wrong here but I'm pretty sure this is what's happened: Imagine I give you a list of numbers to represent wages 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100. The average is 55 What has happened is the jobs paying 10 and 20 are not filled, so now the list is 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90, 100. The average is 65. IT's not that the wages have gone up, they are not being earned so excluded from the sums. It's the lowest paying jobs that aren't being filled due to no cheap labour anymore that's "theoretically" driving up wages, but I think the truth is a little different. Perhaps. But I suspect what we say "not filled" I would be surprised if that would mean completely. Perhaps more information will come out as we move forward. Of course, but that article is very vague at best and uses a proper random data point. I suspect that's what's happened that's all, as I can't for the life of me see how anyone in the hospitality industry for example have had a pay rise in the current climate, most bars are struggling to stay afloat as it is.
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Post by stuttgartershrew on Jun 16, 2021 8:59:43 GMT 1
Perhaps. But I suspect what we say "not filled" I would be surprised if that would mean completely. Perhaps more information will come out as we move forward. Of course, but that article is very vague at best and uses a proper random data point. I suspect that's what's happened that's all, as I can't for the life of me see how anyone in the hospitality industry for example have had a pay rise in the current climate, most bars are struggling to stay afloat as it is. It is vague for sure, as is the The Sunday Times article. No idea whether the actual report they mention is available (from Reed). But things are starting to open up and people are starting to return to bars, restaurants and hotels say. In the Times article is refers to one hotel and manager talking about a surge in bookings. Another is reported to have increased entry level salaries by 5 and 9 percent. So I take it to mean these increases are happening. And that also seems to be the conclusion from Reed (although it would be good to see their report). As I said above though, very early days regarding Brexit and the full impact won't be know for a while yet but one to look out for.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2021 9:01:04 GMT 1
Perhaps. But I suspect what we say "not filled" I would be surprised if that would mean completely. Perhaps more information will come out as we move forward. Of course, but that article is very vague at best and uses a proper random data point. I suspect that's what's happened that's all, as I can't for the life of me see how anyone in the hospitality industry for example have had a pay rise in the current climate, most bars are struggling to stay afloat as it is. Not sure you have seen the post above, but Tim Martin has eluded that they cannot get staff for Love nor Money, in the Hospitality sector at the moment there are loads of vacancies, and that in itself is driving up higher wages.
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Post by frankwellshrews on Jun 16, 2021 9:27:48 GMT 1
To state the bleeding obvious, it does depend on what the vacancies are and who's out of work; can't fit square pegs into round holes. To state the bleeding obvious, many people have had to make there square peg fit round holes…. A job is a bloody job… it pays bills and gives you independence….. just because you think you should be the Next CEO of a multi billion pound company, and you don’t fancy pulling pints to make ends meet…. Tough…. Come on; as an employer yourself you know it's not that simple. There's a cost to you in recruiting someone, the last thing you want is to spend money recruiting and training someone who's over qualified for the role and will jump ship at the first opportunity for something better, sending you back to square one. Similarly people with skills who may have received a decent payoff probably don't want a job they're not interested in getting in the way of finding one they do like and will probably bide their time on their redundancy pay whilst they look. Also, has anybody actually asked publicans if they want a load of either over qualified white collar workers or people with absolutely no experience replacing, for example, Spanish staff who've actually specifically trained to work in hospitality? There's a cost implication of bringing people up to speed too. It will be really interesting to see how this pans out. It certainly seems like brexit and furlough have had he effect of removing people willing to work for low pay from the equation. To get staff, I suspect the Tim Martins of this world will have to start competing with lower rung admin/office jobs not only on pay but also on conditions; I think it's the latter part that always gets overlooked. It's the unsociable hours, tiring work and dealing with the general public that puts people off more than anything. You've got to somehow make that more palatable than a cosy 9 to 5 office job. Going to be very hard and you have to question what this will do to various business models in the sector; don't think Wetherspoons could maintain its price point whilst paying massively better wages for example but it could be brilliant for staff and could be great for consumers who don't mind spending a bit more. Can well see certain elements of society being priced out though. You have to wonder how inflation will play out here too. I speculated on here a while back that the government would like a little bit of runaway inflation to help with this rather unpleasant debt problem they've got themselves into. It'll be interesting to see what does end up happening with, for example, nhs pay. A decent rise there will almost certainly drive further rises elsewhere (in the same way artificially holding down nhs pay via agenda for change set a "floor" for wider pay during the austerity years; as the UK's biggest employer, nhs pay has a much wider reach than most realise) which translates into higher prices and we all know the rest. Alternatively the end of furlough releases a load of candidates back into the market and everything goes back to normal.
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Post by davycrockett on Jun 16, 2021 9:38:51 GMT 1
I would agree if there were not cases of people being re hired then immediately moving to better paid jobs, British Gas are now having a major rethink and overhaul since this policy was implemented as they have lost so many staff they are finding it hard to carry out contractual obligations. Good, serves them right for trying to pull a fast one on once loyal employees. I worked for British Gas uptil November last year and the way they've treated staff is shocking. Basically they thought they'd get more out of the staff by hire and fire with worse conditions. 7 day week rotas, longer working hours, less holidays etc. This was being discussed before the pandemic when BG engineers continued to work even in properties with covid sufferers. They were fair in as much as they furloughd staff on 100% but continued with their hire and fire. The staff they've lost are the gas engineers with the most experience who in the past would work extra whenever required but could easily become self employed and work shorter hours for more reward. Most employees were proud to work for the company but not any more. One man's decision to make a name for himself by sorting out a defining market share destroyed the brand. ‘A kick in the teeth’: British Gas engineers face losing their jobs or longer working hours Bitter ‘fire and rehire’ battle as hundreds of staff bear the brunt of firm’s commercial decline Jillian Ambrose Sun 28 Mar 2021 09.20 EDT 2 months old Hundreds of engineers could be dismissed from the country’s biggest energy supplier by the end of the week as a bitter nine-month battle in the UK’s latest “fire and rehire” debacle reaches its climax. The standoff between British Gas executives and trade union representatives at GMB will come to a head on 1 April, when scores of the engineers responsible for servicing and repairing office and home boilers will be forced to accept longer working hours or lose their jobs entirely. “For the last nine months it has been the first thing I think about when I wake up, and the last thing I think about when I go to sleep. The pressure we’re under is terrible,” says one veteran British Gas engineer. Chris, 51, has worked for the company since 1987 but asked not to be named in full because he may be forced to accept the new terms and remain at the company to support his family. “Honestly, it’s made me ill. It’s made everybody ill. We just can’t understand how badly we’ve been treated – why?” The tougher terms affect the entire 20,000 strong British Gas workforce, but its 7,500 service engineers – who carry out repairs for 3.6m customers who use British Gas for servicing their machines – fear they will take a disproportionate toll on their lives and livelihoods. British Gas claims that the percentage which have accepted the changes are in “the high 90s” – leaving up to 1,000 to face a stark choice in the days ahead. [data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,%3Csvg xmlns='http%3A//www][https://i-guim-co-uk]Ciara Arrowsmith, who resigned from her job as an engineer at British Gas. Photograph: Christopher Thomond/The Guardian “A kick in the teeth is probably the best way to put it,” says Ciara Arrowsmith, 37, who resigned from British Gas in protest last month after 13 years as a service and repair engineer in Sunderland. “I was always very loyal to the company, but I felt that what they were doing was immoral,” she says. British Gas set out the fire and rehire plans last summer as part of a formal consultation process with trade unions. The company said it hoped to “streamline” its employment contracts, and increase productivity, to help rescue the business from the risk of financial ruin. Trade unions said the plan amounted to “bullying” by threatening to “set fire to jobs, terms and conditions”. “It just became a really toxic atmosphere. I felt completely betrayed and it wasn’t good for my mental health. I had to go on to medication, but now I’m off,” says Arrowsmith. “It was just the uncertainty of what it was going to mean for the future because I’ve got two young children. There are loads of people with young kids, with carer responsibilities. This strike was not about money, it was about time.” Under the new terms, full-time engineers would be required to work an extra three hours a week, 40 hours in total, and would not be paid a higher rate to work when required on weekends and public holidays. “It’s a sad state of affairs,” says another British Gas engineer, wary of using his full name. Paul, 45, has worked for British Gas in the London area since the early 1990s. He reluctantly accepted the company’s new terms last week (“two kids, big mortgage”) but has continued to picket with union members to protest the company’s heavy handed threats. “Most engineers have been with the company for a minimum of 10 years, going up to 40 years. We all have British Gas ingrained in us. If you cut us in half, you can read British Gas right the way through,” he says. Before the dispute erupted, many engineers had continued to fix home boilers and heating systems through the first wave of the pandemic, in full PPE, and had half-thought the company might “give us a pat on the back for that, that we might get a bonus”, says Paul. “Then you find out that behind the scenes they have been plotting to effectively rip up our contracts.” He blames the company for allowing inefficiency to creep in, and expecting frontline engineers to bear the brunt of the decade-long commercial decline, which has sunk profits to record lows. “This is certainly not a position anyone wants to be in,” says Chris O’Shea, chief executive of Centrica, parent company of British Gas. “How did we get here? Our business has been declining for a number of years. We’ve lost a million customers in the last 10 years. Our productivity has declined substantially.” The group’s full-year earnings tumbled by more than a third to an all-time low of £80m last year, a fraction of the supplier’s record-high annual profits of £742m reported 10 years ago, before a steady decline which toppled its parent company from the FTSE 100. The decline of British Gas, once a jewel in the crown of Margaret Thatcher’s privatisation agenda, has accelerated as an army of nimble energy supply start-ups increased their market share by offering rock-bottom deals. Meanwhile British Gas boiler repairs and servicing have been eroded by a fleet of local “white van” engineers and repair experts, who can also afford to undercut British Gas rates. British Gas owner plans new turnaround effort as profits hit record low “Our costs are between one-third and one-half higher than the person with a white van, and that is an unsustainable position,” says O’Shea. “Without change we would continue to decline. So I the decision to engage with all four of our trade unions – Unite, Unison, Prospect and GMB – to discuss this and seek a negotiated settlement. And we managed to achieve one with all but the GMB. It’s deeply regrettable. But it’s about the long-term sustainability of our business,” he says. “We’ve tried as hard as we can to be fair. The vast majority are with us. There’s still time for everyone to join us too. But everyone’s got their own choice, and I feel strongly that everyone has to make the right decision for them and their families,” O’Shea says. For workers at British Gas, faced with a choice between working for less and unemployment, there are less than three days left to decide.
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Post by staffordshrew on Jun 16, 2021 9:46:01 GMT 1
Good, serves them right for trying to pull a fast one on once loyal employees. I worked for British Gas uptil November last year and the way they've treated staff is shocking. Basically they thought they'd get more out of the staff by hire and fire with worse conditions. 7 day week rotas, longer working hours, less holidays etc. This was being discussed before the pandemic when BG engineers continued to work even in properties with covid sufferers. They were fair in as much as they furloughd staff on 100% but continued with their hire and fire. The staff they've lost are the gas engineers with the most experience who in the past would work extra whenever required but could easily become self employed and work shorter hours for more reward. Most employees were proud to work for the company but not any more. One man's decision to make a name for himself by sorting out a defining market share destroyed the brand. ‘A kick in the teeth’: British Gas engineers face losing their jobs or longer working hours Bitter ‘fire and rehire’ battle as hundreds of staff bear the brunt of firm’s commercial decline Jillian Ambrose Sun 28 Mar 2021 09.20 EDT 2 months old Hundreds of engineers could be dismissed from the country’s biggest energy supplier by the end of the week as a bitter nine-month battle in the UK’s latest “fire and rehire” debacle reaches its climax. The standoff between British Gas executives and trade union representatives at GMB will come to a head on 1 April, when scores of the engineers responsible for servicing and repairing office and home boilers will be forced to accept longer working hours or lose their jobs entirely. “For the last nine months it has been the first thing I think about when I wake up, and the last thing I think about when I go to sleep. The pressure we’re under is terrible,” says one veteran British Gas engineer. Chris, 51, has worked for the company since 1987 but asked not to be named in full because he may be forced to accept the new terms and remain at the company to support his family. “Honestly, it’s made me ill. It’s made everybody ill. We just can’t understand how badly we’ve been treated – why?” The tougher terms affect the entire 20,000 strong British Gas workforce, but its 7,500 service engineers – who carry out repairs for 3.6m customers who use British Gas for servicing their machines – fear they will take a disproportionate toll on their lives and livelihoods. British Gas claims that the percentage which have accepted the changes are in “the high 90s” – leaving up to 1,000 to face a stark choice in the days ahead. [data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,%3Csvg xmlns='http%3A//www][https://i-guim-co-uk]Ciara Arrowsmith, who resigned from her job as an engineer at British Gas. Photograph: Christopher Thomond/The Guardian “A kick in the teeth is probably the best way to put it,” says Ciara Arrowsmith, 37, who resigned from British Gas in protest last month after 13 years as a service and repair engineer in Sunderland. “I was always very loyal to the company, but I felt that what they were doing was immoral,” she says. British Gas set out the fire and rehire plans last summer as part of a formal consultation process with trade unions. The company said it hoped to “streamline” its employment contracts, and increase productivity, to help rescue the business from the risk of financial ruin. Trade unions said the plan amounted to “bullying” by threatening to “set fire to jobs, terms and conditions”. “It just became a really toxic atmosphere. I felt completely betrayed and it wasn’t good for my mental health. I had to go on to medication, but now I’m off,” says Arrowsmith. “It was just the uncertainty of what it was going to mean for the future because I’ve got two young children. There are loads of people with young kids, with carer responsibilities. This strike was not about money, it was about time.” Under the new terms, full-time engineers would be required to work an extra three hours a week, 40 hours in total, and would not be paid a higher rate to work when required on weekends and public holidays. “It’s a sad state of affairs,” says another British Gas engineer, wary of using his full name. Paul, 45, has worked for British Gas in the London area since the early 1990s. He reluctantly accepted the company’s new terms last week (“two kids, big mortgage”) but has continued to picket with union members to protest the company’s heavy handed threats. “Most engineers have been with the company for a minimum of 10 years, going up to 40 years. We all have British Gas ingrained in us. If you cut us in half, you can read British Gas right the way through,” he says. Before the dispute erupted, many engineers had continued to fix home boilers and heating systems through the first wave of the pandemic, in full PPE, and had half-thought the company might “give us a pat on the back for that, that we might get a bonus”, says Paul. “Then you find out that behind the scenes they have been plotting to effectively rip up our contracts.” He blames the company for allowing inefficiency to creep in, and expecting frontline engineers to bear the brunt of the decade-long commercial decline, which has sunk profits to record lows. “This is certainly not a position anyone wants to be in,” says Chris O’Shea, chief executive of Centrica, parent company of British Gas. “How did we get here? Our business has been declining for a number of years. We’ve lost a million customers in the last 10 years. Our productivity has declined substantially.” The group’s full-year earnings tumbled by more than a third to an all-time low of £80m last year, a fraction of the supplier’s record-high annual profits of £742m reported 10 years ago, before a steady decline which toppled its parent company from the FTSE 100. The decline of British Gas, once a jewel in the crown of Margaret Thatcher’s privatisation agenda, has accelerated as an army of nimble energy supply start-ups increased their market share by offering rock-bottom deals. Meanwhile British Gas boiler repairs and servicing have been eroded by a fleet of local “white van” engineers and repair experts, who can also afford to undercut British Gas rates. British Gas owner plans new turnaround effort as profits hit record low “Our costs are between one-third and one-half higher than the person with a white van, and that is an unsustainable position,” says O’Shea. “Without change we would continue to decline. So I the decision to engage with all four of our trade unions – Unite, Unison, Prospect and GMB – to discuss this and seek a negotiated settlement. And we managed to achieve one with all but the GMB. It’s deeply regrettable. But it’s about the long-term sustainability of our business,” he says. “We’ve tried as hard as we can to be fair. The vast majority are with us. There’s still time for everyone to join us too. But everyone’s got their own choice, and I feel strongly that everyone has to make the right decision for them and their families,” O’Shea says. For workers at British Gas, faced with a choice between working for less and unemployment, there are less than three days left to decide. Centrica has been run very badly and the share price has declined accordingly. They didn't work out that they would lose most of their bill paying customers to the new nimble gas providers, but they did have a great team of technicians to back up gas provision. The sooner these sort of companies realise that loyal staff that will go over and above when you need them are a very valuable asset to the company the better.
It's chicken and egg with the "white van man", as most of them were happy working for BG until they started being treated as a liability, rather than an asset.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2021 11:08:38 GMT 1
Centrica has been run very badly and the share price has declined accordingly. They didn't work out that they would lose most of their bill paying customers to the new nimble gas providers, but they did have a great team of technicians to back up gas provision. The sooner these sort of companies realise that loyal staff that will go over and above when you need them are a very valuable asset to the company the better.
It's chicken and egg with the "white van man", as most of them were happy working for BG until they started being treated as a liability, rather than an asset.
I was playing golf with one of these guys who was fired and rehired last night, who 2 weeks after his rehire (Something like that) told them to stuff it, and to be fair i would feel the same, and admire him for his stance. They were treated appallingly. He has now become white van man, and is loving it. and he has lots of qualifications for the next generation hot water systems which will replace boilers in the long term. My guess is that within 3 months he will be employing his own staff. the difficulty is people have to have confidence in going forward and convince them selves they can overcome the many challenges of becoming a small business owner.
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Post by servernaside on Jun 16, 2021 15:04:46 GMT 1
I think you have some growing up to do. Instead of trying to deflect by kind of abuse, so which is it? Oblivious or condoning? My money is on the latter which is shameful. If you insist of peddling your puerile views on this forum, expect to be criticised.
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