more nutty public sector union behaviour!!

El Stuntman

I had to pinch myself to make sure I wasn't dreaming when I heard this one on Newstalk this morning:

apparently the Dept of Social and Family Affairs implemented a new computer system last July which was supposed to streamline administration etc. However it has caused a fairly major stuff-up for pensioners in that many new applicant for the old age pension haven't received their money yet (the number is disputed but seems to be somewhere between 10-14,000 OAPs who are affected).

So far, so standard. Another public sector IT screwup, very annoying for the pensioners who are affected. Seamus Brennan is doing his usual act of promising the sun, moon and stars but nothing has yet been sorted out.

However, then the Assistant Secretary General (gotta love these pseudo-Stalinist job titles) of the Civil and Public Servants Union then came on the air and said that they were balloting their members for industrial action! Why? Because 'they are having to answer extra phone calls' in order to answer the poor OAPs queries about when the mess will be sorted!

Am I the only one who finds this totally surreal and an indicator that the public service is a land where reality rarely intrudes?

Morlar

El Stuntman wrote:

Am I the only one who finds this totally surreal and an indicator that the public service is a land where reality rarely intrudes?

Just be grateful they haven't stress leave due to all this 'work'.

markpb

I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt and suggest that maybe they're ticked off at how long it's taking to fix and at all the abuse they're getting because of it. Presumably they've tried to pass the message upwards that it needs to be fixed and they're not listening so they're using the age-old civil service tactic of putting weight behind their message: striking.

I know very little about the situation though so I could be completely wrong.

Wishbone Ash

markpb wrote:

they're using the age-old civil service tactic of putting weight behind their message: striking

Based on the info the OP has provided, they intend to ballot for 'industrial action'. No mention was made of a strike.

Wishbone Ash

El Stuntman wrote:

the Assistant Secretary General (gotta love these pseudo-Stalinist job titles) of the Civil and Public Servants Union

Apologies for being pedantic but the title is "Assistant General Secretary" not Assistant Secretary General. (Newstalk may have got it wrong).

El Stuntman

markpb wrote:

I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt and suggest that maybe they're ticked off at how long it's taking to fix and at all the abuse they're getting because of it.

yes, this is exactly why

and my answer is 'so what?'

people get abuse from their customers all the time in the private sector and don't take industrial action over it. I feel sick imagining that my taxes are going to pay people's salaries who think this kind of behaviour is acceptable

lostexpectation

El Stuntman wrote:

I had to pinch myself to make sure I wasn't dreaming when I heard this one on Newstalk this morning:
However, then the Assistant Secretary General (gotta love these pseudo-Stalinist job titles) of the Civil and Public Servants Union then came on the air and said that they were balloting their members for industrial action! Why? Because 'they are having to answer extra phone calls' in order to answer the poor OAPs queries about when the mess will be sorted!

Am I the only one who finds this totally surreal and an indicator that the public service is a land where reality rarely intrudes?

do they have enough people to answer all these calls? you now what it like when you swamped at work.

El Stuntman

lostexpectation wrote:

do they have enough people to answer all these calls? you now what it like when you swamped at work.

yes, you work hard and help to clear the backlog

you don't decide to down tools!!

i71jskz5xu42pb

El Stuntman wrote:

Why? Because 'they are having to answer extra phone calls' in order to answer the poor OAPs queries about when the mess will be sorted!

Well that's the reason he gave.

A cynic might see this as a precursor to a demand for a hefty bonus payment to clear the backlog. I mean clearing the backlog during working hours might mean having to work though elevenses :eek:. Claire Byrne pretty much tiptoed around asking him this.

No cynics around these here parts thankfully.

Wishbone Ash

El Stuntman wrote:

yes, you work hard and help to clear the backlog

you don't decide to down tools!!

From experience, I know that issues like this only come to a head after extensive attempts to get the employer to address the problem.

It is unfair to compare a private sector problem with one in the public sector. Private sector employers are much more open to change especially if it affects profit. (I work in both public and private sectors so I can do some comparison). Private sector managers are also much more autonomous and can hire extra staff more easily, especially on a short term basis. They are not subject to embargos, open competition or political interference that public sector employers are.

El Stuntman wrote:

people get abuse from their customers all the time in the private sector and don't take industrial action over it

If they don't wish to do anything about it then that is their loss but it shouldn't be used as a comparison for others. What would you prefer - a race to the bottom? .

FlutterinBantam

The only thing I would ask the Public Service to do is give us value for money.

At the moment its anything but that,although there are some excellent Depts.

Unfortunately as El Stunt has outlined all it takes in one yorick in a union position to stir up the shyte and the hardliners will always rally to the cause.

hardliners who if they were asked to do an honest days work would collapse in a heap in a dead faint.

Voipjunkie

So the Dept **** up and it goes on for 6 months and the issue is not just that people are getting angry phone calls the issue is that thousands of pensioners are not getting there entitlements in a timely manner.
The union is probably trying to highlight the issue in order to get the people who should be dealing with this off their arses.
People have compared the situation to the private sector but the truth is that if it was the private sector the management would be out of jobs if they allowed a situation to continue where their customers were waiting for months for service.
Can you imagine a situation where the checkout operators in Aldi had to threaten strike because the tills had not worked properly for 6 months causing long queues in the shop NO because it would not happen but some how people think it is OK for pensioners to be left waiting for months for their pensions no the scandal is a trade union trying to highlight the issue honestly some people are so anti union they can't see the wood for the trees.

Zombrex

El Stuntman wrote:

yes, you work hard and help to clear the backlog

you don't decide to down tools!!

I would imagine they would say "why?, we didn't cause this mess"

Would you expect the workers on a factory assembly line for Nike or BMW to work extra hours because the company management messed up?

You seem to be slightly missing the point of a "union." A union is there to protect the workers from the managment screwing them over. The management f**ked up, they should find a way to deal with it, not simply lump it into the hands of the workers at ground level who have no power to actually do anything.

lostexpectation

El Stuntman wrote:

I had to pinch myself to make sure I wasn't dreaming when I heard this one on Newstalk this morning:

However, then the Assistant Secretary General (gotta love these pseudo-Stalinist job titles) of the Civil and Public Servants Union then came on the air and said that they were balloting their members for industrial action! Why? Because 'they are having to answer extra phone calls' in order to answer the poor OAPs queries about when the mess will be sorted!

Am I the only one who finds this totally surreal and an indicator that the public service is a land where reality rarely intrudes?

complete and utter nonsense where do you guys get these idealogical scripts from. the poeple in sligo don't have the resources to deal with the problem, they don't have the answers for the pernsioners coming in, so they getting it in the neck from all directions and they have to force the managment to admit the problems.

Mick86

El Stuntman wrote:

However, then the Assistant Secretary General (gotta love these pseudo-Stalinist job titles) of the Civil and Public Servants Union then came on the air and said that they were balloting their members for industrial action! Why? Because 'they are having to answer extra phone calls' in order to answer the poor OAPs queries about when the mess will be sorted!

Why don't tehy do what every other Civil Servant does. Ignore the phone.

NewDubliner

Mick86 wrote:

Why don't tehy do what every other Civil Servant does. Ignore the phone.

Because your statement is abusive and untrue & because like any decent person, they want to do a good job and to be provided with the means to do it.

Macy

So a Union highlights problems with a computer system that doesn't work, leading to non payment of pensions and massive increase of work for their members, and it's the Unions fault? This is just bizarre logic.

The decisions of which (no doubt private) consultants would be used and the development of the system would've been the responsibility of the senior management. God forbid the right wing posters would actually blame them and the Minister in charge rather than shooting the messengers...

FlutterinBantam

I will have to side with the workers on this one.

probably frustrated about lack of action/incompetence/and inability of management to solve the problem.

doesn't let the public service off the hook though, It's the same old story.

people should be let go for gross incompetence,