UK General Election 2015

[doubleup]

I refer back to my previous comment about unemployment at its lowest level for years and wages up.

If this is, as many on here proclaim, failing, what, pray tell, is moving in the right direction?

As  relaedgc points out, far too many ignorant people acting according to type and oblivious to the facts of what is actually happening.

Productivity is lower than it was in 2006.  The new "jobs" aren't producing anything except in work benefits.

[david3103]

I refer back to my previous comment about unemployment at its lowest level for years and wages up.

If this is, as many on here proclaim, failing, what, pray tell, is moving in the right direction?

As  relaedgc points out, far too many ignorant people acting according to type and oblivious to the facts of what is actually happening.

Productivity is lower than it was in 2006.  The new "jobs" aren't producing anything except in work benefits.

Also, lots of those "jobs" are part time, zero hours, <living wage.

[Kmac84]

I refer back to my previous comment about unemployment at its lowest level for years and wages up.

If this is, as many on here proclaim, failing, what, pray tell, is moving in the right direction?

As  relaedgc points out, far too many ignorant people acting according to type and oblivious to the facts of what is actually happening.

Productivity s down and so are earnings in real term. 

Stats, stats, stats and more damn lies.

[Kmac84]

I refer back to my previous comment about unemployment at its lowest level for years and wages up.

If this is, as many on here proclaim, failing, what, pray tell, is moving in the right direction?

As  relaedgc points out, far too many ignorant people acting according to type and oblivious to the facts of what is actually happening.

Productivity is lower than it was in 2006.  The new "jobs" aren't producing anything except in work benefits.

Also, lots of those "jobs" are part time, zero hours, <living wage.

Should have read upto here, this is very much at the crux. 

[TightEnd]

Superb article about party strategies, hung parliaments and who wants what

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/apr/19/general-election-2015-hung-parliament-miliband-cameron

[Whollyflush]

I refer back to my previous comment about unemployment at its lowest level for years and wages up.

If this is, as many on here proclaim, failing, what, pray tell, is moving in the right direction?

As  relaedgc points out, far too many ignorant people acting according to type and oblivious to the facts of what is actually happening.

Isn't this also in part down to people being on zero hour contracts and many peoples benefits been cut or completely taken away from them so as they aren't claiming hence they don't register as unemployed? certainly explains the rise of the number of people using food banks.

[Kmac84]

I refer back to my previous comment about unemployment at its lowest level for years and wages up.

If this is, as many on here proclaim, failing, what, pray tell, is moving in the right direction?

As  relaedgc points out, far too many ignorant people acting according to type and oblivious to the facts of what is actually happening.

Isn't this also in part down to people being on zero hour contracts and many peoples benefits been cut or completely taken away from them so as they aren't claiming hence they don't register as unemployed? certainly explains the rise of the number of people using food banks.

Yes, it's part of the targetting that isn't there.

[Ironside]

could be enough to swing it?

http://www.buzzfeed.com/emilyashton/this-labour-election-poster-pledging-to-get-rid-of-katie-hop

[Marky147]

could be enough to swing it?

http://www.buzzfeed.com/emilyashton/this-labour-election-poster-pledging-to-get-rid-of-katie-hop

Definitely an appealing thought, that she might jog herself on!


See they've got Nigel Farage on BBC1 on Wednesday, with a guy called Evan Davis.

[scotty77]

I think I've read maybe 2 or 3 of her pieces lifetime and the only TV stuff that she's done that I paid attention to is when she was in the Apprentice.

But the fact that she is constantly on TV and has newspaper columns shows that she has more fans than haters. 

It's just that the haters are the ones who rant and rave on twitter/FB/make stupid petitions.

[Marky147]

Seen a few interviews, where she just seems to try and be as offensive as possible.

Don't hate her, as such, but I definitely find her rather unpleasant.

Fortunately I don't have the time, nor inclination, to fall into that last category

[BigAdz]

I refer back to my previous comment about unemployment at its lowest level for years and wages up.

If this is, as many on here proclaim, failing, what, pray tell, is moving in the right direction?

As  relaedgc points out, far too many ignorant people acting according to type and oblivious to the facts of what is actually happening.

Productivity is lower than it was in 2006.  The new "jobs" aren't producing anything except in work benefits.

Also, lots of those "jobs" are part time, zero hours, <living wage.

I love the way zero hours contracts are always lumped in the "almost don't count" category, like they are a bad thing. Speak to anyone in the NHS and they love them.

[TightEnd]

thought this was very useful

"This election looks a close-run thing – very close run indeed. As I write, polls and forecasts suggest strongly that no party’s going to get near a majority. There’s a lot of talk about what could happen after May 7th. And an idea’s beginning to take hold that, in a hung Parliament, Ed Miliband would need some sort of advance promise of support from the Scottish Nationalists before the Queen would appoint him Prime Minister.

That, though, is a wrong reading of the constitution.........."


http://www.headoflegal.com/2015/04/19/ed-can-enter-no-10-without-nicolas-keys/

[DMorgan]

I love the way zero hours contracts are always lumped in the "almost don't count" category, like they are a bad thing. Speak to anyone in the NHS and they love them.

I don't know where you get this stuff from

Of the three nurses that I know, not one of them would categorise learning their shifts a few weeks in advance as an element of their job that they 'love'.

The problem with zero hours contracts I think is that they are a very specific tool to deal with changing demand quickly. In some instances they work really well like for a housemate who does rope access work on building sites. Its a pretty niche job so he gets paid reasonably well for it and he gets hours when he contractor has work. This works out well for both parties, but the problem comes when businesses that don't really have flexible demand start to put people on zero hours contracts because they want to be able to dismiss staff at will or to dodge redundancy obligations.

The NHS is a great example of this. From the article linked below:

The HSJ survey shows shows that 194 out of 229 NHS trusts for which figures are available missed their own targets for the number of nurses who should be present on wards during the day. Two-thirds failed to meet their own target for the number of nurses on duty at night.

In all, 79 hospitals missed their target for the total number of nurse hours that should have been filled during the day; the figure was more than 10% at 45 hospitals. For night shifts, 96 hospitals breached their target by up to 5% and 43 by between 6% and 10%, while 15 trusts filled fewer than 90% of their planned nurse hours.

http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2015/apr/20/ed-miliband-promises-to-raise-number-of-nurses-in-training

Chronic under-staffing takes away the flexibility for the employee because one of the key points of a zero hours contract is that as well as the employer being under no obligation to offer hours, the employee is under no obligation to accept any allotted hours.

I wonder what you'd find if you asked those NHS workers that love their zero hours contracts how it would go down with their employer if they started turning down shifts. What usually happens is that nurses and care workers are guilt tripped into taking whatever hours they are given because they know that not doing the shift leaves the ward or home a staff member down and just piles more pressure onto their colleagues.

In practice, the number of people contracted for the employer to experience their flexibility is much smaller than the number of needed for the employees to realise their side of the flexibility agreement, and it is often the case that employers are satisfied with the number of people on the books once their own needs have been met and if if leaves the business a little under-staffed then well, everyone can just work a bit harder.

[MANTIS01]

I employ about 100 associates on zero hours contracts, mostly uni students. When exams roll around they tell me they want less hours or no hours at all, when it gets to holidays they want as many hours as possible. Seems to be ideal situation for them.