Discontent #9 food, energy, transport, cost of living, society etc

[IngressUK]

I wasn't actually refering to the strikes. I meant the lack of staff. Same with care home workers.

If you can't attrack people to a role, you're probably not paying enough. £13 an hour isnt very much to be out on a cold train platform. I'd rather take an unskilled office job for more money.

The job i used to do 12 years ago - in an office- isn't paying much more now than 12 years ago. I have seen many positions advertised for that job in recent times around the £12-14 per hour mark.

£13 per hour was the average back then, still seems to be now.

Working in an office isn't any less stress than dealing with the public, especially if you are working in an office job dealing with the public on the phone.

 

[Folkevermore]

But compare those salaries to those working in retail, hospitality and other such low paid sectors.

They barely scrape £10 per hour, do not get a final salary pension, nor free/reduced travel perks.

I don't think some realise how much the travel perks add up to for Rail jobs. Can be many £000's per year - none of which is liable for tax - even though it is essentially a benefit in kind.

Bus drivers are on around £12.50 an hour. I would be more supportive towards them, if they opted to strike.

Retail and hospitality workers are grossly underpaid too - just because some people are being screwed over by their employers, doesn’t mean we should belittle those who are being paid slightly more but still not enough.
No one can actually live on £20k a year very easily.
Also travel perks are only good if you use them - other than commuting to work, railway workers rarely travel on trains. What’s the point if you’re working almost every weekend anyway?
Final salary pensions are great but at least where I work you have to be employed for over 5 years to be eligible, and if you’re earning £20k you’re going to be sacrificing your financial health way more by staying on that salary than you would if you took a job without a final salary pension. Our generation probably won’t be able to retire until 70+ anyway.

The job i used to do 12 years ago - in an office- isn't paying much more now than 12 years ago. I have seen many positions advertised for that job in recent times around the £12-14 per hour mark.

£13 per hour was the average back then, still seems to be now.

Working in an office isn't any less stress than dealing with the public, especially if you are working in an office job dealing with the public on the phone.

As someone who’s done both, office was way less stressful for me, especially with working from home.

 

[Blond3g1rl]

The job i used to do 12 years ago - in an office- isn't paying much more now than 12 years ago. I have seen many positions advertised for that job in recent times around the £12-14 per hour mark.

£13 per hour was the average back then, still seems to be now.

Working in an office isn't any less stress than dealing with the public, especially if you are working in an office job dealing with the public on the phone.

At least in an office you can roll your eyes when on the phone or replying to an email

 

[Yel]

Now the train strikes have moved to the weekends (as the weekday strikes have little affect) hospitality are complaining.

Christmas rail strikes will be ‘devastating’ warn hospitality chiefs

Sarah Willingham, CEO of 36-strong bar group Nightcap, said ‘the Government should not allow this to happen’.

www.standard.co.uk

 

[Folkevermore]

Now the train strikes have moved to the weekends (as the weekday strikes have little affect) hospitality are complaining.

Christmas rail strikes will be ‘devastating’ warn hospitality chiefs

Sarah Willingham, CEO of 36-strong bar group Nightcap, said ‘the Government should not allow this to happen’.

www.standard.co.uk

Hospitality will suffer regardless of trains. We’re all too broke to eat out.
last time I went for a meal out at a chain with my partner it was £45! We didn’t have alcohol either

 

[IngressUK]

Retail and hospitality workers are grossly underpaid too - just because some people are being screwed over by their employers, doesn’t mean we should belittle those who are being paid slightly more but still not enough.
No one can actually live on £20k a year very easily.
Also travel perks are only good if you use them - other than commuting to work, railway workers rarely travel on trains. What’s the point if you’re working almost every weekend anyway?
Final salary pensions are great but at least where I work you have to be employed for over 5 years to be eligible, and if you’re earning £20k you’re going to be sacrificing your financial health way more by staying on that salary than you would if you took a job without a final salary pension. Our generation probably won’t be able to retire until 70+ anyway.



As someone who’s done both, office was way less stressful for me, especially with working from home.

If you work in a call centre, in an office, you get stress from the management over targets, plus stress from irate customer after irate customer on the phone. Many call centre jobs are not well paid either.

 

[Folkevermore]

If you work in a call centre, in an office, you get stress from the management over targets, plus stress from irate customer after irate customer on the phone. Many call centre jobs are not well paid either.

I know, I’ve worked one. Weirdly all of the lower paid jobs have been the worst and most stressful jobs I’ve ever worked

 

[Yel]

Hospitality will suffer regardless of trains. We’re all too broke to eat out.
last time I went for a meal out at a chain with my partner it was £45! We didn’t have alcohol either

The trains is exasperating the situation and that extra lost revenue could be the nail in the coffin.

That said meals out are horrendously bad value for money in the UK. It's a total waste if it's a chain imo. I'm in France alot and you can get a really good meal for about the same or maybe a bit less than the big chains in the UK.

 

[IngressUK]

Also travel perks are only good if you use them - other than commuting to work, railway workers rarely travel on trains.

Really?

The people I know seem to take full advantage of their travel perks on days off. I doubt they are alone.

One has been up to Wales and Scotland this year with wife and kids, as well as numerous trips into London and Oxford.

Some may not use their perks, although I suspect the majority do.

 

[Folkevermore]

The trains is exasperating the situation and that extra lost revenue could be the nail in the coffin.

That said meals out are horrendously bad value for money in the UK. It's a total waste if it's a chain imo. I'm in France alot and you can get a really good meal for about the same or maybe a bit less than the big chains in the UK.

Most of the restaurants in my town are chains tbh. I couldn’t ever imagine jumping on a train go somewhere else just for a meal, especially the bigger cities because they’re even more expensive.
If I’m going to eat out, I’d do it locally.

Really?

The people I know seem to take full advantage of their travel perks on days off. I doubt they are alone.

None of the ones I know do, including myself (I work a railway office job though so to be clear I’m not one of the striking staff members).
my brother, partner, and my coworkers rarely travel on trains outside of commuting.
This discount is great but we can’t really afford “days out” in this economy, and to be honest for a lot of them the last thing they want is to see more trains after having spend 40 hours on them for the last week .
You mentioned one of the people you work with is an ex British rail member. They’ve clearly worked in the railways a long time. They’re probably older with more disposable income and aren’t being robbed blind by rent and mortgage costs.
It’s also worth noting that Network rail staff (a large amount of the striking staff) do not get this perk

 

[IngressUK]

Most of the restaurants in my town are chains tbh. I couldn’t ever imagine jumping on a train go somewhere else just for a meal, especially the bigger cities because they’re even more expensive.
If I’m going to eat out, I’d do it locally.


None of the ones I know do, including myself (I work a railway office job though so to be clear I’m not one of the striking staff members).
my brother, partner, and my coworkers rarely travel on trains outside of commuting.
This discount is great but we can’t really afford “days out” in this economy, and to be honest for a lot of them the last thing they want is to see more trains after having spend 40 hours on them for the last week .
You mentioned one of the people you work with is an ex British rail member. They’ve clearly worked in the railways a long time. They’re probably older with more disposable income and aren’t being robbed blind by rent and mortgage costs.
It’s also worth noting that Network rail staff (a large amount of the striking staff) do not get this perk

Yes, the ex-BR man is not far off retirement.

Yes, it does seem madness that those that maintain the railways do not get the same travel perks.

However, this is down to the track and train operations being separated. Network Rail don't operate any services.

Although I do think all should be entitled to the same perks.

 

[Jc456]

Really?

The people I know seem to take full advantage of their travel perks on days off. I doubt they are alone.

One has been up to Wales and Scotland this year with wife and kids, as well as numerous trips into London and Oxford.

Some may not use their perks, although I suspect the majority do.

I know someone similar. They've taken the kids to Scotland, Wales, London etc. They go somewhere at least twice a month

 

[Folkevermore]

I know someone similar. They've taken the kids to Scotland, Wales, London etc. They go somewhere at least twice a month

Might be a generational thing, most people I know can’t afford trips to Scotland and Wales and London at the moment.
Regardless, a leisure travel benefit doesn’t substitute actual pay.

 

[Jc456]

Might be a generational thing, most people I know can’t afford trips to Scotland and Wales and London at the moment.
Regardless, a leisure travel benefit doesn’t substitute actual pay.

They do things like the free museums, Christmas markets in different towns, go to different beaches, they all love trains so will travel to see steam trains etc

 

[Folkevermore]

They do things like the free museums, Christmas markets in different towns, go to different beaches, they all love trains so will travel to see steam trains etc

Good for them, but like I said, not a substitute for actual pay

 

[Romy]

In France, all the railways company workers have free tickets in the whole country (but even if they go somewhere else in Europe, it's free until the border at least...). The only condition is they have max 8 trips a year in the trains that need mandatory reservation (like the TGV-fast trains). Beyond that number of trips, they only have to pay the reservation fare which very recently was 1,50€ in a "normal period" or 13,90€ in the "peak time" (I don't know if the fare changed a bit).

Their partners and children until 21 years old can also travel 16 times a year for free. Beyond, they only have to pay 10% of the public fare.

AND parents and parents-in-law can also use 4 free trips a year.

Absolutely not normal nowadays but no government ever had the balls to change that (excuse my French !)
Rather good pay and other advantages too, but these guys are regularly on strike.

 

[Xales]

Ug, going to London on 12th to go to a concert. Have taken half day off work so I have hours to get there in case they decided to strike that day. Doesn't help everyone else but phew! This is my Christmas treat to myself.

 

[Falkor]

Ug, going to London on 12th to go to a concert. Have taken half day off work so I have hours to get there in case they decided to strike that day. Doesn't help everyone else but phew! This is my Christmas treat to myself.

I've got to get from Luton Airport to Gloucestershire that day - does anyone know how much notice they have to give of a strike? Holding off on booking train tickets in case I need to hire a car instead.

 

[Folkevermore]

I've got to get from Luton Airport to Gloucestershire that day - does anyone know how much notice they have to give of a strike? Holding off on booking train tickets in case I need to hire a car instead.

Strikes for December are already announced.

 

[BaxterBillions]

Ug, going to London on 12th to go to a concert. Have taken half day off work so I have hours to get there in case they decided to strike that day. Doesn't help everyone else but phew! This is my Christmas treat to myself.

Only a half day off work? That's some xmas treat