That was until I read This piece by Richard that reminded me those good old folk at the TV Licensing place were on strike yesterday.
TV Licensing is in my hometown of Darwen so I jumped in the car and drove down to the Capita building so I could harass the picketers for a while and get something for the blog.
I fully support their strike and would do so for as long as they felt a need to strike, the longer the better.
So I set off to offer my 'support' to the picketers and ask for comment, but when I turned up there was not a soul around. Nobody. No picket, no placards, no nothing, so I had to go home again.
I told Richard on his blog that the striking staff didn't even bother to hold a picket; that they were all sat at home with their feet up watching the BBC. Well it turns out that the actually did hold a picket.
TV LICENCE workers carried out a 24-hour walkout in Darwen yesterday over a pay rise dispute.
Twenty five workers based at India Mill in Bolton Road carried plackards at the front of the building, protesting at the 2.6 per cent offer by Capita.
I know it was only 25 workers but I didn't miss them. That photograph is the very location that I went to and nobody was there.
Do pickets only last for a morning rather than a full working day? Or did these people turn up for long enough to get a picture and a few words for the Lancashire Telegraph before going straight back home?
Alan West, representative of the Communications Workers Union which has sanctioned the move, said: “It was a very good turnout in Darwen with 25 to 30 people out from 7.30am to 10.30am.
Yep. Part time picket. Just a brief publicity stunt to get a story in the local rag then off home and probably back to bed.
They say the deal, which equates to £400 extra per year for many of the workers, is below inflation and is ‘a pay cut in real terms’.
They really should count their blessings that they have been offered anything, many in the private sector have had no pay rise at all. Times are currently difficult yet some people continue to bury their heads in the sand.
And lets not forget where these peoples wages come from. They are after all, tax collectors, yet they collect taxes to pay for something that many people would prefer not to use, and like all tax collectors they do it with guile, trickery, lies and the threat of force.
"Many others are on as little as £11,500 or £12,500 per year at a time when the cost of living is rising.
It may surprise you to know that Capita is not responsible for the cost of living and neither are they duty bound to compensate for it. Granted you do appear to be on quite low paid jobs if these figures are correct, however take a quick look at the job you do and you may see why.
You spend the day on the telephone or knocking on doors threatening people with court backed force and penalties if they don't agree to buy a TV Licence. It doesn't take skills and education to do that now does it.
The call centre part could easily be transferred to Bangladesh to save money also.
A persons earning power is driven by their skills / experience and current market forces, not their lifestyle expectations. If you wish to increase your earning potential then I would suggest a change of path, possibly involving night school.
It's definitely time the TV Licence was scrapped and these public sector leeches changed their careers. If the BBC were to charge a subscription to use their services, these people could sell / collect that money. It would become a two way transaction without the need for lies or trickery, although I imagine there wouldn't be a need for very many sales staff as I can't see too many people voluntarily paying for the BBC.
Maybe if they improved their service...
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