Double standards squared

Much has been made of the potential strike action by public sector workers in their dispute with the government pension reform.

Now read reforms as; higher pensions contributions, having to work longer to get their pensions and getting less for these higher and longer contributions.

These pension reforms are to be made, so the government says, because public sector pensions are becoming a burden on the tax payers.

Public sector workers are seeing huge job losses and pay freezes, so this means in real terms they are working harder for in real terms less, so with higher pension contributions this will see public workers income being squeezed.

In reality public sectors workers did not cause the recession, they are not responsible for the low growth and stagnant recovery.

The people who caused the recession were bankers who used the markets as their casino and gambled on leverage lending and a neo liberal political settlement.

So the bankers; Bank chiefs’ average pay in the US and Europe leapt 36 per cent last year to $9.7m, according to data compiled for the Financial Times, despite variable performance across the sector.

We have seen a switch from higher banker bonuses to higher pay.

Our MP's pensions are based on fortieths of an MP's salary for every year he or she is in parliament, so better terms than your local public sector workers.

There are growing signs this economic sitution is being used to reshape the burden from state to private individuals, the powerful i.e bankers unfettered riches, with low to middle income families paying more tax, with fewer services, less social insurance and more private insurance.

Drip by drip the changes are being made, effectively working longer for less benefits, the divide between the powerful and those whom own wealth and the rest of the population is growing dangerously, the public sector is angry and this may lead to industrial action. I hope the Unions and government can agree a settlement.

Those low paid workers in the private sector, those with no pension, no long term career development, no sick pay scheme, those in short term employment, those who have no security of employment, who speaks for these workers?

The danger is extremist politicans will fill the void, our MP's tells them that they must be flexible, must price yourself into work, yet the bankers and corporate bonuses continue to over pay themselves and MP's still live in there own worlds.

The low paid workers can look to a government of millionaires, can look to the heads of our corporations and see their double standards.