Why are strikes predominantly in the public sector?

[DynamicSpirit]

Not so, comrade from Darlington, even wearing my best Harris Tweed hat. I was using this analogy to make a comparison with the implied capitalist threat in an earlier posting to what occurred under the Soviet regime in Russia in the 1920's and 1930's. The workers can be just as much oppressed under Communism as under Capitalism.

While what you say is undoubtedly true, it still seems to me irrelevant. The comment you replied to was this:

The government are trying to get even more out the workforce for even less money. Public sector workers are being pushed to the limit.

I don't see any reference to capitalism per se in ralphchadkirk's point. It appears to be specifically a criticism of the current Government, not a criticism of capitalism.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

I don't see any reference to capitalism per se in ralphchadkirk's point. It appears to be specifically a criticism of the current Government, not a criticism of capitalism.

....and the difference between those two bodies is what ?

 

[Tetchytyke]

Public sector workers often have far better terms and conditions and pay than private sector workers doing similar level jobs.

That's simply not true.

Average public sector wages sometimes appear higher, based on what metric you use, but that's because the lowest-level public sector jobs were outsourced a very long time ago. You don't generally see cleaners in the public sector anymore, their jobs were sold to ISS or Initial years ago. You don't have the lowest-paid jobs in the public sector so the average wage is higher; you also don't have the highest-paid jobs in the public sector either.

If you're comparing like-for-like jobs, then private sector wages are higher than public sector wages. The public sector claws some of that back in additional benefits- pensions or more employment stability- but not all of it, and it varies by sector.

Paul Sidorczuk, I'm still not sure what your point is. One can be broadly supportive of capitalism whilst also thinking the current Government are taking the wee-wee out of public sector workers. There's a whole ocean of clear blue water between Communism and TeaParty psychopathy neo-liberalism.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Paul Sidorczuk, I'm still not sure what your point is. One can be broadly supportive of capitalism whilst also thinking the current Government are taking the wee-wee out of public sector workers. There's a whole ocean of clear blue water between Communism and TeaParty psychopathy neo-liberalism.

More than happy to oblige. I was just making the point that the working classes (the matter that was previously under discussion) have been oppressed since the early parts of the 20th century as much as by Communist regimes as well as by those Western regimes who espouse capitalism, which as you quite rightly state "have a whole ocean of clear blue water between them".

 

[ralphchadkirk]

I don't think the sector you work in determines the class you belong to!

 

[TheKnightWho]

I don't think the sector you work in determines the class you belong to!

This. It's a mite bit more complex than that...