Off Topic The Goodhand Arms

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Whiteley Saint said:
When I was in a union I always voted. Not always as they wanted me to :p. However, there were people who did not think they should vote against what the union wanted so wouldn't vote. The voting was never a high turnout and it did make me wonder how many actually wanted to strike etc. and were the unions actually representing what there membership wanted? If people had voted then everyone would have known where they stood.
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The maddest manipulation of figures I've seen for a while. She said 92% voted to strike, which sounds grand until you work it back to being less than 25% of members.

The wheel that squeaks the loudest gets the oil, springs to mind.
 
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fatletiss said:
Some teachers are striking today. I know some people won't like this, but I really don't like it when a strike occur. This morning I heard an interview with a striking teacher and she didn't want to listen to the effect it had on other people. For example, the thousands of parents having to make arrangements of take days off their work because their children can't go to school.

Apparently less than 1 in 4 teaching union members voted to strike. Of that number it was 92% in favour and the teacher interviewed kept harping on about that number. Now it's all down to interpretation, but for me those numbers tell me that three quarters of the members didn't want to strike. Voting against would probably have been seen as bad behaviour!

I know we have teachers on here, so I'm sure I won't be popular, but it's how I feel. My childrens' school currently sends all pupils home at lunchtime when there is a parents "evening"... "Evening" now being in the afternoon (again tough for some parents to attend). This happened 2 weeks ago and today my daughter is off school. I am fortunate that I work from home. Others are less fortunate.

Just as a foot note before I get battered for not understanding the strain teachers are or under, I know. My wife and both mothers-in-law (yes, I have two of those) work in schools.
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I don't know what the reason is, for the strike, but I generally don't have any issues with people taking strike action, so long as all other avenues have been explored, prior to the action being taken.

IMO, voting rules should be changed, so that all union members should have to vote (ditto the electorate for general elections), but until that happens we just have to accept the result, no matter how skewed it may appear.
The government were looking at bringing in rules to make it necessary for a certain percentage to vote, to validate strike action, but I think they were shelved when it was suggested that the same rule should apply to general elections, which was considered unreasonable. I may be wrong on that, but it rings a bell.

Any scorn, in my opinion, should be aimed at those eligible to vote, who didn't.
If they genuinely, didn't want to strike, then they should have voted, and changed the result. By not voting, they have opened themselves and their union up to criticism, yet these same teachers won't be shy when it comes to accepting any benefits gained by this strike action. Should there be any.
 
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St Badger said:
I don't know what the reason is, for the strike, but I generally don't have any issues with people taking strike action, so long as all other avenues have been explored, prior to the action being taken.

IMO, voting rules should be changed, so that all union members should have to vote (ditto the electorate for general elections), but until that happens we just have to accept the result, no matter how skewed it may appear.
The government were looking at bringing in rules to make it necessary for a certain percentage to vote, to validate strike action, but I think they were shelved when it was suggested that the same rule should apply to general elections, which was considered unreasonable. I may be wrong on that, but it rings a bell.

Any scorn, in my opinion, should be aimed at those eligible to vote, who didn't.
If they genuinely, didn't want to strike, then they should have voted, and changed the result. By not voting, they have opened themselves and their union up to criticism, yet these same teachers won't be shy when it comes to accepting any benefits gained by this strike action. Should there be any.
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Nail on head !
 
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St Badger said:
I don't know what the reason is, for the strike, but I generally don't have any issues with people taking strike action, so long as all other avenues have been explored, prior to the action being taken.

IMO, voting rules should be changed, so that all union members should have to vote (ditto the electorate for general elections), but until that happens we just have to accept the result, no matter how skewed it may appear.
The government were looking at bringing in rules to make it necessary for a certain percentage to vote, to validate strike action, but I think they were shelved when it was suggested that the same rule should apply to general elections, which was considered unreasonable. I may be wrong on that, but it rings a bell.

Any scorn, in my opinion, should be aimed at those eligible to vote, who didn't.
If they genuinely, didn't want to strike, then they should have voted, and changed the result. By not voting, they have opened themselves and their union up to criticism, yet these same teachers won't be shy when it comes to accepting any benefits gained by this strike action. Should there be any.
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and again .

That is sooooo bloody annoying . I pay my union to negotiate for ME and these free loaders get the same pay rise ?????????:emoticon-0121-angry

They are quick enough to join when they need the unions help !!!!!!!!!
 
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Have to say, I think Pistorius has got off lightly twice from Judge Masipa. Some of her words during sentencing seemed to attempt to provoke sympathy for this man whose life has been 'broken'.
 
Pistorius will serve 2 years of the 6 in prison. The rest under house arrest. So he will spend a grand total of 3 years behind bars for the murder of his girlfriend.
 
Chilcot report: UK joined war in Iraq before all peaceful options were exhausted and when military action was not last resort.
 
fatletiss said:
I'm lazy. I'll wait for the summary :)
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Also, the intelligence gathered on Iraq was massively flawed. So Blair wasn't entirely to blame. Cock up after cock up by an incompetent government, resulting in the deaths of god knows how many soldiers and innocent civilians.
 
tomw24 said:
Also, the intelligence gathered on Iraq was massively flawed. So Blair wasn't entirely to blame. Cock up after cock up by an incompetent government, resulting in the deaths of god knows how many soldiers and innocent civilians.
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Most wars seem to have incompetence leading to the deaths of lots of soldiers. Not always Governments sometimes officers. I never understand why anyone joins the armed forces but luckily for me they do. Why can't we just defend ourselves instead of always having to get involved?
 
"I will be with you, whatever." Tony Blair's confidential memo to George W Bush in July 2002.
 
Ouch...I have had shocking tooth ache for a few weeks now. Yesterday they took a tooth out, or most of it as some of the root is stuck! I have a swollen face now and look like Iain Dowie (sorry Iain). Big pain! :frown:
 
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