Thousands back pensions strike
Over 3,000 members from a range of unions marched
along Princes Street to a rally in Princes Street
Gardens after the strike ground the city to
a halt on 28th March.
Local government and other public service
workers striking against pensions cuts were
told that government plans are a 'disgrace'
and must be defeated.
The strike is expected to bring transport to
a halt, close over half of the city's nurseries,
many schools, most council buildings and affect
refuse collection, cleaning, environmental health,
road services and social work services.
"We will have life and limb cover in place
for themost vulnerable but the scale of the
strike will show just how essential all of the
jobs in local government are", said John Stevenson,
Chair of UNISON's Edinburgh Branch.
John Stevenson chaired the lobby and was joined
by Alex McCluckie (GMB), Jimmy Farrelly (T&G),
Sandra Kenny (STUC) and George Lee, UNISON Branch
Secretary.
John told the rally, "This morning, several
of us here went to St Andrews House to see and
deliver a letter to Tom McCabe, the Scottish
Executive Minister for Finance and Local Government
Reform. The man who says he's going to cut your
pension rights in Scotland.
"Our letter told him that the arbitrary
decision he made about pensions undermined everything
the Executive had said before about valuing
the work of local government staff, delivering
first class public services - very often in
very difficult circumstances.
"We told him that it made us wonder if
the Executive really did value that work. We
told him we had been open and transparent. We
had shown him our legal advice on the rule of
85. But he still won't show us the advice he
says contradicts this.
But it's not just our legal advice, it is also
Cosla's - our employers - this must be the first
time we've been on strike and our employers
are 100% behind us!
"And we demanded that he abandon the plans
to remove the rule of 85 and give our members
the common decency of being able to actually
get the benefits they've paid for over the years.
"And don't forget - we have paid our dues.
We have paid every week, every month into this
pension fund - even when the councils took a
holiday and paid nothing for years.
"And can I save a word for the press?
All the papers seem to have suddenly found columnists
ready to call local government workers 'greedy'
and 'lazy' and not in touch with the real world.
"Well I'll show you lazy. Fat cat pensions
for top industrialists that work a few hours
a week in directorships? An index linked MP
or MSP's pension? Or a home carer dedicating
their lives to looking after others, being forced
to work on rather than retire.
"What about greedy? Millions of pounds
worth of golden handshakes for top managers
who are sacked for being crap at their jobs
and losing their companies millions. Or the
average pension for our women members of just
£31 a week?
"And not in touch with the real world?
Sitting in an air conditioned office, travelling
first class, getting a free car and all sorts
of tax breaks - or humping bins around at six
o clock in the morning and being told you'll
have to do that till you're 65 before you get
the pension you paid for?
We are not lazy. We are not greedy and we are
only too much in touch with the real world of
low wages, shortage of resources and more and
more pressures trying to deliver the best services
we can.
"Some of these columnists should get out
a bit more and they might find the real world
right under their noses!
"Home carers, road workers, refuse workers,
social care workers, nursery nurses, cleaners,
social workers, workers who protect our environment,
our health and our safety, who look after the
most vulnerable, who educate who care and who
work damn hard to do all this - all of the essential
jobs in local government - forcing them to work
till they drop, or take cuts in the pensions
they have paid into all their lives is not fair,
is not reasonable, is not in the interests of
public services - and is frankly a damn disgrace.
"You've shown you think that too. You've
shown you are prepared to fight. And you've
shown the politicians they've picked the wrong
fight here. "
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