Do You Support The Bus Drivers - Yes Or No

[craggy_steve]

People don't get it, if the drivers get done this year, whats to stop other areas being hit next year? What if its your jobs? Then you want people to support you, at the end of the day the problem is not the drivers but our govt's wastage of millions down the years and now the chickens have come home to roost, as George Galloway said we cannot treat the civil service like rubbish that can be thrown away it needs protecting and politicians need to be held to account.

 

Other areas will be hit next year - no inside information but the writing's on the wall, we ain't got the money.

 

The bus driver's jobs were not threatened, they were asked to take less money for doing the job (but still more than bus drivers across etc.) because we haven't got the money.

 

A large proportion of Gov't spending is on pay, we haven't got the money so either some people get paid less or fewer get paid.

 

Arguably, the bus drivers are overpaid, certainly in comparison with bus drivers elsewhere.

Arguably most government employees are overpaid (they earn more than private sector employees, get better benefits and greater job security.

 

Whole thing has been very badly handled, by senior government employees who appear to be, at the same time, trying to protect themselves. I have some sympathy for the bus drivers because they appear to have been badly mis-managed, but the reality remains than we must either pay government employees (including senior management) less, or have fewer of them, or both.

 

I think we get it. Lots of us in the real world don't have jobs, we make our own livings. Being an employee is neither a right nor necessary, there are plenty of justifications for claiming that it's actually a Bad Thing.

 

George Galloway is an entertaining prat.

[Beelzebub3]

This is a test case for the government, if they win this one look out because the teachers/nurses could be next. The bus drivers may not be that popular however remember that a lot of staff at the hospital use a bus to get to work so also do ancillary staff so in effect the drivers do provide a valuable service, they have to stand up against a government who have never really dealt with industrial issues like this before and remember this is just the start what next Baggage handlers at the airport, again not the most popular of government staff, could we manage without them? truth is we could for a short time and what would we do, get a private firm in and of course they would provide a wonderful service like the catering firms at the airport and the over zealous security staff all private, has this saved us any money? truth is no it has not and will not as proven in other areas of the british isles. I think that we have to look at the bigger picture before we can alienate ordinary working men fighting for what they think is right. Good luck I say because we could be next.

[Source of Gravity]

Not when they strike to affect children's bus runs after school. Cutting funding for education and bus strikes affecting exam taking children - appalling. Makes the Island look prehistoric. One thing we always said about the IoM was it great place to bring children up. Less so now by the looks of things.

[hboy]

Ahead of the inevitable statement from both sides later today about how both sides have the support of the public I thought it would be interesting to see which side really do.

Straight forward yes or no, there are plenty of other threads to debate the issue in.

 

NO - if I got paid £35,000 a year for the easiest job in the world I'd keep my gob shut and take a drop in pay on the chin. If they are not happy they can always leave and take a job in the private sector for at least £10,000 less doing a similar driving job.

[La_Dolce_Vita]

I don't particularly support the bus drivers outright. (Nor disagree with their strikes necessarily). I am not sure what to think as I haven't kept up to date with all the minutiae surrounding the issue.

 

But I don't have time for this nonsense about the children. It's childish talk in itself. Why does it all become different if strikes have an impact or directed to have an impact on by way of the daily routine of children (and their parents)? A few people have mentioned it and you get the same reaction from dickheads when teachers go on strike - "How dare they turn the kiddies worlds upside down, Selfish Bastards, etc...", but it seems their arguments are presented as if it is clear that their strike action is wrong.

In this case, the worst that can happen is that some kids go to school late for one day. Big fucking deal. But that's ignoring the facts that the parents have made other plans for their kids to get to school.

Of course it courses disruption - but that's the point and it is a good way of doing it.

[Thomas Jefferson]

I support the Isle of Man tax payer.

 

This is not a bus driver -vs- management issue; this is the Isle of Man tax payer -vs- two competing gangs of overpaid workers.

 

BOTH the bus drivers AND the management are overpaid. I liked the proposal of the bus drivers to accept pay cuts if the management did the same.

[Non-Believer]

People do get it. This is only the start of an inevitable major correction across the govt/CS/PS.

 

Except central Govt and the CS will be the last possible bodies to have the correction applied to them, Albert. We've already had Bell dismissing much-needed changes to terms for new CS employees as being "divisive". MHKs/MLCs have had pension contributions and the declination of pay rises marked as "voluntary options". How about offering to contribute to their own petrol as a gesture? No chance.

The sacred cows have formed their own circle within the wagons and are ensuring that they'll be the very, very last to feel any pain.

 

I'm not particularly supportive of the bus drivers but they do have a principle as long as an amoral Govt continues to stuff its own pockets and wave two fingers at the rest. They will bleed Joe Taxpayer white with taxes and charges before the end and to what purpose? So they can continue to trough and offer a wealthy few some more tax-breaks? Think about it - when will they realise that people will shortly have had enough and taxes will have to come down? Dwindling fuel receipts already, booze taxes must be on the same way cos the pubs are empty - this is a blind alley, Eddie....

[dilligaf]

It's important to show that the government is in charge, and for once is actually governing.

 

But it isn't actually governing, is it? It's playing gesture politics. It's acting at being in charge but all it's doing is attacking the privileges of one (reassuringly working-class) group of government workers while leaving the more substantial privileges of all the rest in place. At the same time we're being told that the bus drivers have to have a new contract we're being told that we can't possibly do the same for other public employees.

 

The DCCL is claiming that money 'has' to be saved on drivers' wages while at the same time splashing the cash on all sorts of daft projects and capital spending - not to mention in (often unnecessary) anti-strike measures. And if you have enough people in bus management that they can provide a full Sunday bus service between them, that rather suggests that you've got way too many.

 

The whole affair is basically play-acting - an attempt to show that they are "doing something". A department and a government that were serious about cutting costs would have looked at the terms and conditions of all employees at the same time instead of "standing up" to one particular group that they thought would be unpopular - the fact that they are refusing to go to arbitration rather suggests that they don't want to do that. Of course if the drivers had felt that all parts of Bus Vannin and the DCCL were being treated equally then they might have been less likely to go on strike - but that would have made things less dramatic and less of a distraction from other problems with the department.

 

And anyone who believes that this will be start of a more rational approach to government is just being naive - there's no indication that anything more than a few other token gestures when things get desperate will be attempted.

 

Working class ,on £30,000 - £40,000 per year. I don't think so!

The management are not driving all the buses, though, are they ? But maybe by providing a Sunday service without too much disruption shows that we don't need 110+ highly paid drivers. !!

[hboy]

The management are not driving all the buses, though, are they ? But maybe by providing a Sunday service without too much disruption shows that we don't need 110+ highly paid drivers. !!

 

So you are paying them then?

 

You let your facade slip there for a second.

[dilligaf]

The management are not driving all the buses, though, are they ? But maybe by providing a Sunday service without too much disruption shows that we don't need 110+ highly paid drivers. !!

 

So you are paying them then?

 

You let your facade slip there for a second.

 

Don't be F*&%*£g stupid.

The only way I have any connection to their pay is by paying tax. How the f*%k can people on here think I have anything to do with Bus Vannin purely by not siding with drivers or the "anti" brigade??.

[hboy]

The management are not driving all the buses, though, are they ? But maybe by providing a Sunday service without too much disruption shows that we don't need 110+ highly paid drivers. !!

 

So you are paying them then?

 

You let your facade slip there for a second.

 

Don't be F*&%*£g stupid.

The only way I have any connection to their pay is by paying tax. How the f*%k can people on here think I have anything to do with Bus Vannin purely by not siding with drivers or the "anti" brigade??.

 

You protest too much. Go on admit it?

[Matt Bawden]

Not when they strike to affect children's bus runs after school. Cutting funding for education and bus strikes affecting exam taking children - appalling. Makes the Island look prehistoric. One thing we always said about the IoM was it great place to bring children up. Less so now by the looks of things.

 

"Waaaahhhh!!! What about the children, won't somebody think about the children"......give it a rest and wind yer neck in, I've got three children and I disagree with you, don't use the "Won't somebody think of the children line" as it's tired and most of all it's relative to whose children at what particular moment and you only serve to embarrass yourself.

[dilligaf]

The management are not driving all the buses, though, are they ? But maybe by providing a Sunday service without too much disruption shows that we don't need 110+ highly paid drivers. !!

 

So you are paying them then?

 

You let your facade slip there for a second.

 

Don't be F*&%*£g stupid.

The only way I have any connection to their pay is by paying tax. How the f*%k can people on here think I have anything to do with Bus Vannin purely by not siding with drivers or the "anti" brigade??.

 

You protest too much. Go on admit it?

 

No, Never

[hissingsid]

Matt Bawden why don't you wind your neck in and treat other contributors with some respect, if you have any spare time get the traffic lights fixed at the Manx Arms before someone gets killed.

[Matt Bawden]

Matt Bawden why don't you wind your neck in and treat other contributors with some respect, if you have any spare time get the traffic lights fixed at the Manx Arms before someone gets killed.

 

Do you mean treat other contributors with respect in exactly the same way as you do? Anyway, there's always some do-gooder bleating on about how things will affect the children as if the children are made of marshmallows.

 

As far as the aspect (pardon the pun) of my job regarding Onchan Traffic Lights I can honestly and proudly say my job is done. As I have said before if you have any concerns raise them via the correct procedures, 672000, reportaproblem.im or if you feel you need to push something further you need to contact Network Planning at the Sea Terminal Building