Post by Deleted on Sept 7, 2010 21:48:34 GMT
I just watched the video. Am not sure if I am right, but history tells me that when spending gets cut, Unions members working for public bodies suffer when their leaders go on the war-path. Sincerely hope that the leaders can add up (well they do their salaries so one can only imagine they have the skills) but if spending is cut further, there will be compulsory redundancies. A campaign of attrition can only breed animosity. If Unions paint themselves in too bad a light, being inflexible, militant and insist in not engaging, spending will only be cut further and a greater level of automation sought resulting in further redundancies. I am referring to Marx' writings here. I'm sure Bob Crow knows all about these writings on labour being a long time socialist, so it shouldn't be too much of a problem for him to grasp one of the basic principles of a founder of his ideology. I'm also sure that when redundancies are made, Union membership decreases and so the clout of Unions decreases.
If I were in Crow's position, I'd consider what his aims are and if they're realistic given the circumstances and economic conditions we're all living through. I'd look to sustaining the maximum number of LU jobs through engagement with politicians and make each strike count through engagement with the media and public, spinning the politics of the day.
If I were myself in Johnson's place, I'd use any ongoing strikes to build bad feeling toward the Unions amongst the general public and to gain support for alternative forms of transport such as the cycle hire scheme. I'd make the Unions look bad and possibly use this as an opportunity to make compulsory redundancies. Put simply I'd look to break Transport Unions.
If I were in Crow's position, I'd consider what his aims are and if they're realistic given the circumstances and economic conditions we're all living through. I'd look to sustaining the maximum number of LU jobs through engagement with politicians and make each strike count through engagement with the media and public, spinning the politics of the day.
If I were myself in Johnson's place, I'd use any ongoing strikes to build bad feeling toward the Unions amongst the general public and to gain support for alternative forms of transport such as the cycle hire scheme. I'd make the Unions look bad and possibly use this as an opportunity to make compulsory redundancies. Put simply I'd look to break Transport Unions.