Again early this morning on the business section of the Today programme between 6am and half pas the hourt, I listened to a BBC correspondent suggest that the state sector had suffered in recent years with very modest wage increases. This was related to the TUC conference today where the comrades are seeking to encourage Brown and Darling to open the cheque-book for some inflation-busting wage increases for the army of state workers. Now I appreciate that the BBC is PART of the State but please, can we not just have the facts? You know the facts I’m talking about, don’t you? The ones that show that average state sector worker now earns MORE than his private sector equivalent? The ones that show that the average state sector worker has enjoyed years of wage increases way greater than those awarded in the private sector? The ones that show that 99% of state sector workers enjoy final salary pension schemes (compared to 18% in the private sector)? If we want to debate the merits of wage increases in the state sector, can we please have the full economic background and not just selective cherry-picking by biased BBC journalists aimed at making us feel sorry for the state?
PITY THE STATE SECTOR?
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! Citation needed !
I’ve seen figures either way on that one. It seems to be a classic case of ‘statistics can prove anything’. Having said that the trend seems to be that state employee wages have at the very least been catching up which the BBC should be flagging hard.
The BBC should remind viewers and listeners who is going to pay for these rises. Many people are not getting anything like what these “public” workers are on. There are in any case far too many leaching on us, a cull is called for, as in now!
If the private sector is paying less then they should open up their checkbooks!
Especially in NI where things are more expensive than the rest of the UK.
Why should we pay higher taxes and suffer poorer services so that public sector workers can have final salary pensions while most of us in the private sector will have to take our chances. It is just unfair.
The private sector doesn’t do it because it cannot afford to, so why should we pay for final salary pensions for those who don’t have to be competitive.
I’m a professional working in the private sector and I can be a lot better off as a teacher (which has tempted me many a time) – the wages may come out slightly lower but the overall package is far better when you consider the pension, housing assistance and golden handshakes. The private sector simply cannot compete with that. And they shouldn’t have to.
If our public sector take the cream of our professionals then the private sector will lose out, when the private sector loses out the whole economy loses out. It’s a very dangerous policy to allow the public sector to outbid the private sector.
Paul McLaughlan writes: “If our public sector take the cream of our professionals then the private sector will lose out…”
Yet, judged by their miserable performance, you would have to conclude that the public sector actually attracts a high proportion of absolute duffers.
The BBC being a perfect example, of course…
You have a point…