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Free Lekky ..........only in Ireland.

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    #62
    panda100
    Closed Accounts Posts: 7,551 ✭✭✭panda100


    I wish I worked in a field with such perks. Working in the care and disability sector all I get is cuts and tax hikes :(


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    #63
    RoundyMooney
    Closed Accounts Posts: 10,910 ✭✭✭✭RoundyMooney


    AlmightyCushion wrote: »
    I remember hearing before that Ireland had the lowest (or close to it) energy prices in the EU back when ESB had a monopoly of the market. The energy regulator decided it would be a good idea to introduce competition to the market so to encourage competitors to set up here they raised the price of electricity to make it more attractive for new entrants. So the regulator sets the prices and set them high to get new entrants into the market to encourage competition and bring about lower prices.

    I doubt it's true because it sounds stupid but it wouldn't surprise me.

    This is true, and it's a pity everyone doesn't know it.

    As a matter of fact, we had underpriced electricity for many years, due to political distaste toward raising the price of the light, and the networks were underfunded as a result. Having said that, ESB wasn't exactly a model of efficiency back then either (now it's probably the most cost effective and progressive utility in Europe), but reliability was ultimately appalling...

    Now the network is improving all the time, and outages are kept to a bare minimum. Some of the energy regulators work is quite worthy, encouraging and enforcing quality standards on ESB Networks for example, but much of it is meddling for the sake of justifying yet another quango.

    These are all just my opinions :)


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    #64
    RoundyMooney
    Closed Accounts Posts: 10,910 ✭✭✭✭RoundyMooney


    sollar wrote: »
    Not the ones i see.....

    How can you tell that ESB vehicles aren't intended to last fifteen years just by looking at them?


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    #65
    AlmightyCushion
    Moderators, Education Moderators, Technology & Internet Moderators Posts: 35,059 Mod ✭✭✭✭AlmightyCushion


    RoundyMooney wrote: »
    This is true, and it's a pity everyone doesn't know it.

    As a matter of fact, we had underpriced electricity for many years, due to political distaste toward raising the price of the light, and the networks were underfunded as a result. Having said that, ESB wasn't exactly a model of efficiency back then either (now it's probably the most cost effective and progressive utility in Europe), but reliability was ultimately appalling...

    Now the network is improving all the time, and outages are kept to a bare minimum. Some of the energy regulators work is quite worthy, encouraging and enforcing quality standards on ESB Networks for example, but much of it is meddling for the sake of justifying yet another quango.

    These are all just my opinions :)

    Not as bad as I thought, I didn't know about the problems before regulation came in. At least the price increases brought some good.


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    #66
    jonnyone
    Closed Accounts Posts: 26 ✭jonnyone


    http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/finance/2010/1130/1224284435121.html

    Just spotted this in todays Irish Times


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    #67
    MazG
    Closed Accounts Posts: 237 ✭✭MazG


    FlutterinBantam wrote: »
    And who decides on whether these parameters are being adhered to.?

    Look, we took our eyes off the banks which were pvt companies and look what happened.

    The ESB is a semi-state, therefore it behoves the taxpayer who funds them to be interested on how the company is run.

    As a taxpayer I am very interested in how these companies are run.


    Well, that's a fair point. You are correct in that we should be interested in ensuring that semi-state bodies are run efficiently. However, that wasn't the starting point to this thread. The starting point was more like IT IS OUTRAGEOUS THAT ESB EMPLOYEES GET FREE ELECTRICITY! THERE CAN BE NO JUSTIFICATION FOR IT! I MAY EXPLODE WITH THE RAGE! (ONLY IN IRELAND). In addition, I did include a clause in my post that you quoted stating that as long as the overall remuneration is appropriate, then the make-up of the package is not really my concern, and I stand by that.


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    #68
    Tefral
    Registered Users Posts: 4,321 ✭✭✭Tefral


    I wasnt gonna post in this thread but looking at some of the bull**** being posted here I felt I had to.

    My Father works for the ESB. Some of the ****e people think they know about it is unreal, there are people calling for it to be sold when they havent a clue.

    - The ESB pays a massive dividend to the government every year.
    - The ESB is NOT allowed drop the price it charges its consumers for is service by a Goverment Appointed regulator. This is to reduce the monopoly that ESB had on the market. It has to drop its consumer base below 60% before it is allowed compete with prices.
    - ESB is one of the most effecient utility companies in all of Europe. Ill dig out the article later that supports this..( I might actually have to scan it in if i cant locate it on the net)
    - ESBI is one of the worlds leading authorities on power generation in the world. Is arm designs and runs power stations from America to the Far East. Its main office is in St.Stephens Green.
    - ESB takes on many apprentices that have lost their jobs in Mechanics and Electrical trades and helps them to complete their on the job phases.
    - The ESB was bound by the Government endorsed Union agreement on payrises for profitable companies. The ESB costs the Government **** all and actually gives money to the state as it is a profitable company, it has to therefore pay the increases as set out in the agreement.
    - The ESB last year reduced the level of staff in the company by a voluntary redundancy scheme to shed the dead wood in the company and make it more effecient. To my knowledge this is the only company in the "Public" sector that did this without being forced to do so by the Government or any other outside pressue.
    - The ESB has a pay freeze in place by agreement for 3 years starting this year.
    - All ESB employees were subject to a reversal of a planned 2.5% payrise by ESB management
    - The commission for Energy Regulation keeps a very close eye on the ESB much closer than the regulator did on the banks.
    - ESB workers used to be allowed take their vehicles home, that policy has stopped bar those "on call" workers, this is to save the company money and also to free up the fleet whic is being reduced to a level of 0.9 vehicles per crew

    I could go on and on and on on how this company is effiencent in its nature, no doubt that its employees are well treated but so were alot of us Private sector workers when our companies were rolling in it..


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    #69
    El Weirdo
    Registered Users Posts: 11,646 ✭✭✭✭El Weirdo


    I think everyone is missing the elephant in the room here:

    A TD questioning what appear to be "perks" of other peoples' jobs.


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    #70
    Tefral
    Registered Users Posts: 4,321 ✭✭✭Tefral


    El Weirdo wrote: »
    I think everyone is missing the elephant in the room here:

    A TD questioning what appear to be "perks" of other peoples' jobs.

    ha ha exactly.. the cheek of them rolling around in their Mercs. Its very easy look down on others from an Ivory Tower


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    #71
    sollar
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,007 ✭✭✭sollar


    cronin_j wrote: »
    All ESB employees were subject to the pension levy imposed in the last budget on Public Sector workers.


    I thought they didn't have to pay the pension levy, there is no mention of it in the ESB website.

    http://www.tribune.ie/news/article/2009/feb/22/decision-to-abandon-semi-state-pension-levy-will-c/


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    #72
    MazG
    Closed Accounts Posts: 237 ✭✭MazG


    El Weirdo wrote: »
    I think everyone is missing the elephant in the room here:

    A TD questioning what appear to be "perks" of other peoples' jobs.


    Fantastic point


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    #73
    Tefral
    Registered Users Posts: 4,321 ✭✭✭Tefral


    sollar wrote: »
    I thought they didn't have to pay the pension levy, there is no mention of it in the ESB website.

    http://www.tribune.ie/news/article/2009/feb/22/decision-to-abandon-semi-state-pension-levy-will-c/

    You are in fact correct. They were to get a 2.5% rise and instead this was agreed not to be paid.


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