Something I Want To Say In Regards To These Difficult Times...

[alastairq]

5 minutes ago, pheaton said:

but however do have a more generous pension and better working conditions compared to the private sector...

There are many low paid Civil Servants who roundly disagree with that!

The pensions are not all they're cracked up to be.

Neither are they 'non-contributory,' as is so often claimed...contributions come from other sources, under other names.

Working conditions are what they are. Everything pretty much was fought for by those unions involved in the Civil Service.

 

There are also many things a Civil Servant is obliged to comply with, or not do.....which would be unheard of in the 'private sector'..

[Legend]

As the saying goes there are only two certainties in life ........death and taxes !

 

I do believe that if you have income you should pay a FAIR amount of tax .

 

As retirement looms  I always dreamed I could set up my own model railway shop . With all the uncertainties about , not just Covid , but issues like peoples future disposable income , supplies from manufacturers etc etc I think I'd be barking mad to enter , even though I believe there is an opportunity for a model shop in West Central Scotland .  There isnt one at the moment.

 

As we retire I think you have to look at ways to interact with community . Something needs to take the place of the time you spend at work and all the social interractions that you would miss. For my sister , she decided to volunteer at a Charity Shop , it keeps her enguaged with the community and she is offerring her services for free . She feels she is contributing and she has made lots of friends and acquaintances. I can see the attraction as its only two half days a week .  Now if there were a model shop offering me something like that I'd jump at it .  A hobby I enjoy and a chance to talk to likeminded people . It works if you dont have expenses , but if the shop also paid minimum wage covering expenses I'd be there like a shot .  Fortunately Id be in a position that my  Pension would be main income and almost certainly I'd be paying tax on it . But what I'm trying to say is , for a lucky few , taking up a job is more than the money it pays . There are other considerations .

 

For those that do run shops , well done for operating throughout . I daresay a good few have taken that for granted . 

Edited October 29, 2021 by Legend

[Mallard60022]

3 hours ago, alastairq said:

There are many low paid Civil Servants who roundly disagree with that!

The pensions are not all they're cracked up to be.

Neither are they 'non-contributory,' as is so often claimed...contributions come from other sources, under other names.

Working conditions are what they are. Everything pretty much was fought for by those unions involved in the Civil Service.

 

There are also many things a Civil Servant is obliged to comply with, or not do.....which would be unheard of in the 'private sector'..

Well said matey. Most people that suggest that 'Civil Servants' are ok etc have never worked in the Public Sector. High level CS bods that we hear about, because they are high level bods concerned with Government,. do get paid well. Then there are the rest.

Sadly so many people think that anyone that is  a 'Council Worker' (they are not Civil Service, they are Public Service Employees) has similar 'benefits' to those Yes Minister types; nope.

The misconception of so many about what others earn and what they do or don't do to earn that, is frankly frightening and fed by The Daily Bugle that spreads fake news most of the time to feed its flock.

As for the original post I stand by a previous comment I made. Patience is a virtue; use it wisely in this I want it now World.

Phil

P

[pheaton]

4 hours ago, alastairq said:

There are many low paid Civil Servants who roundly disagree with that!

The pensions are not all they're cracked up to be.

Neither are they 'non-contributory,' as is so often claimed...contributions come from other sources, under other names.

Working conditions are what they are. Everything pretty much was fought for by those unions involved in the Civil Service.

 

There are also many things a Civil Servant is obliged to comply with, or not do.....which would be unheard of in the 'private sector'..

If your going to quote me...do it properly...dont just cherry pick the bits you disagree with...

 

I agree civil servants are lower paid than there equivalent private sector colleagues...having worked in both industries.....however...

 

The civil service pension outstrips a typical equivalent role private sector pension by quite a margin in terms employer contributions, few private sector areas allow for full Flexible working, few private sector areas allow for the amount of holiday the civil service offers. Job security is also higher in the civil service.

 

bearing in mind....the last private sector job I worked in....the employees (some of which had been there for 40 years) were taken offsite to be told there was a 97% deficit in their pension funds.....something which the civil service (with its government backed pension) is immune from.

 

and before anyone asks  I work in one of the most restricted areas of the civil service... and have done for the last 12 years.

 

oh and our union is not worth the paper its written on.

Edited October 29, 2021 by pheaton

[alastairq]

1 hour ago, pheaton said:

If your going to quote me...do it properly...dont just cherry pick the bits you disagree with...

 

I agree civil servants are lower paid than there equivalent private sector colleagues...having worked in both industries.....however...

 

The civil service pension outstrips a typical equivalent role private sector pension by quite a margin in terms employer contributions, few private sector areas allow for full Flexible working, few private sector areas allow for the amount of holiday the civil service offers. Job security is also higher in the civil service.

 I mentioned nothing about the lower levels of pay [IE, low pay?]  However, if one posts multiple observations, then expect some so-called 'cherry picking' to be conducted!  It's why, when one hilites sections of another's post, the first thing that pops up is the 'quote' box!

 

I was concerned that there is a good deal of misconception about how 'good' the Civil Service pensions are.

 

The claim that civil service pensions are 'non-contributory' is misleading as well. OK, compared to  a private sector job, where one pays a 'pension contribution', that may be so. But the Civil Service extracts the contributions in other ways.  There are several compulsory contributions not exactly labelled ''for the pension'', but in effect, are so.

Performance-wise, the Civil Service pensions are  not in any way the best, by a long chalk. [Although over the past decade there has been considerable flux in conditions, with differing pension rules]

To obtain a decent pension income, a Civil Servant has to purchase additional pension credits.  Which is fine if one's pay grade and income can benefit from it.

But when on a basic, or mid-grade salary, then a few percent of not a lot isn't very much!

From personal experience, I have a civil service pension....for 20 years service.

Percentage-wise, my private company  pension from my days as a bus driver, performs infinitely better, for less than a third of the contributory years.

The State pension trumps them all for performance, however.

As do Armed Forces pensions, Fire Service pensions, etc.

 

[rob D2]

On 29/10/2021 at 11:34, Legend said:

As the saying goes there are only two certainties in life ........death and taxes !

 

I do believe that if you have income you should pay a FAIR amount of tax .

 

As retirement looms  I always dreamed I could set up my own model railway shop . With all the uncertainties about , not just Covid , but issues like peoples future disposable income , supplies from manufacturers etc etc I think I'd be barking mad to enter , even though I believe there is an opportunity for a model shop in West Central Scotland .  There isnt one at the moment.

 

As we retire I think you have to look at ways to interact with community . Something needs to take the place of the time you spend at work and all the social interractions that you would miss. For my sister , she decided to volunteer at a Charity Shop , it keeps her enguaged with the community and she is offerring her services for free . She feels she is contributing and she has made lots of friends and acquaintances. I can see the attraction as its only two half days a week .  Now if there were a model shop offering me something like that I'd jump at it .  A hobby I enjoy and a chance to talk to likeminded people . It works if you dont have expenses , but if the shop also paid minimum wage covering expenses I'd be there like a shot .  Fortunately Id be in a position that my  Pension would be main income and almost certainly I'd be paying tax on it . But what I'm trying to say is , for a lucky few , taking up a job is more than the money it pays . There are other considerations .

 

For those that do run shops , well done for operating throughout . I daresay a good few have taken that for granted . 

But of course ,If you were to work for free in a model shop, you are doing  someone who needs the money out of an hourly rate .

Charity shop is entirely different matter of course 

[Legend]

2 hours ago, rob D2 said:

But of course ,If you were to work for free in a model shop, you are doing  someone who needs the money out of an hourly rate .

Charity shop is entirely different matter of course 

Maybe the model shop can’t afford to pay the rate .  

[rob D2]

3 minutes ago, Legend said:

Maybe the model shop can’t afford to pay the rate .  

Not really an argument is it ?

would you work for free in Asda ?

[Legend]

15 hours ago, rob D2 said:

Not really an argument is it ?

would you work for free in Asda ?

 No but that’s precisely the point . Asda wouldn’t interest me , although there’s still the interaction . But working in a model railway shop we be of interest . And suppose that shop is not very large and having someone man it for a few days is the difference between it staying open or not . What would you rather have . I tell you I wish I had a local model shop .