Jeremy

Did anyone else initially mis-read the previous post?

malumbu Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > We all work five hours plus extra unpaid overtime > a week. We will work up our day, which we don't > get paid for, in any case. Yeah, but surely unpaid overtime is commonplace? It is expected in almost any professional role, why should the public sector be different? sophiesofa Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > The kids will just not have any respect for the > teacher unless they have the stamina and enthusiasm > to be there If a teacher genuinely cannot be effective when they are in their late 60s, surely there is other work they could do within the education system? As I said earlier in the thread, if an employer is going back on contractual T&C, then that is not reasonale. But I don't see why the public sector should be automatically entitled to better pensions, shorter working hours, and earlier retirement than the rest of us.

Alex K Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > A branch of PHAM SUSHI from up on Whitecross Street. Yep, Pham Sushi is really good - I work round the corner! Surprised nobody has opened a sushi place in ED yet.

It has been a slightly troublesome spot for businesses, but I don't know why. It's a fairly attractive parade of shops, highly visible, major road, lots of housing nearby, kids playground, etc. So perhaps the location isn't the problem...

In what way is it not East Dulwich?

Hey Ken - any idea where I can buy a Capon this Christmas?

So in short - it's going to be a bad weekend for the Brits!!

I'm quite comfortable with the phrase "white trash" in this situation... as if to say "please don't judge other white people by the actions of scum like this".

Thomas Micklewright Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > perhaps a chocolate shop like the melange in bellenden rd??? Bellenden Rd is a 5 min walk away from there!

If it provides a decent income which Southwark can spend on public services, then it sounds like a good idea to me.

Believe me Tarot, neither Myself or Otta hesitate to speak out when we disagree with SeanJack!

SJ... surely a quiet word in Scott's shell-like will get you to the front of the queue...

Thanks Sue & SJ... on further investigation, it appears to be a Sunday-only service.

> For the record I think Sue sounds very demanding, fickle and unreasonable. For the record, you sound like a fool. Have we seen "PaulK" before then?

People seem to like it a lot, but I'm not really tempted by the no-reservations, queues-down-the-road scenario. Maybe one for a Monday night, perhaps.

alice Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > it seems the government > and its mate,the media have been highly successful > in recreating the old them and us scenario. I don't see how you can deduce that from my post. I was pointing out that a lot of people in the private sector have also had to go through redundancies, increased workloads, diminished pensions and later retirement. Times are tough for a lot of people - so you can understand that not everybody will have sympathy for those who are striking.

I only joined fairly recently, but have also dialled an 0208 number and got through directly to reception.

Pugwash Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > I am a front line worker and work frequently from > 10 am - 7./7.30 pm most evenings. Since earlier > this year we have lost 4.5 posts in our team and > the work load has increased 25%. In order to catch > up with our paperwork, it is nothing unusual to > find people in the office at weekends just to keep > on top of things. We do not get paid overtimem. As > we deal with very vulnerable people, often > palliative, others disabled, others being abused, > it is also emotionally draining. We frequently > have to visit homes which are covered in faeces, > blood and vomit, sometimes infested by vermin and > fleas. We have been threated with violence and > verbally abused, but are not allowed to seek > redress from our employers. I and my colleagues > have good salaries, but under the new proposals > will need to pay another ?1000 plus per year and > get a lower pension. We accept that we need to pay > more and are willing to do so, but when you are > advised that the pension you may eventually get in > 10/15/20 years time, is significantly lower, than > what is quoted for today........ - I don't consider 10-7./7.30 to be a particularly long working day. And believe me, plenty of private companies have had a lot of redundancies, leaving the remaining staff to take on extra work. Weekend working is not uncommon - overtime is almost unheard of (perhaps unless you do shift work). Most people have seen their pensions plummet in value recently. We are all facing the reality of working until we're 70 and paying everything we can into our pensions. What is so special about the public sector?

I don't have a problem with dropped kerbs and off-street parking... you have to assume that most cars would be parked on the street most of the time anyway. Environmental impact is a red herring, as most front gardens are either concrete/paved already.

You used to be able to get direct trains from ED to East Croydon - back when daytime services were 6 an hour...

I was about to post the same thing myself. Surely this must be a serious criminal offence?

Supporting local shops. I use the good ones (WR, SMBS, a couple of others) - but because they're good, not specifically because they're local/independent.

> "God knows why you can't by a TV that has no reciever Economy of scale... I expect the receiver is a cheap bit of electronics, it's probably cheaper to stick a receiver in every TV than to offer two different models. Actually - as Huguenot says - it is possible to buy just a monitor, but large, TV-style monitors tend to be niche/professional/commercial type products.

Not really that interested in the history, to be honest. Copleston Road is in SE15. SE15 = Peckham and Nunhead. It's a nice road - a handful of scruffy properties, but improving all the time. More conveniently located than much of East Dulwich.

I'm in two minds about these strikes. The large perks enjoyed by some public sector workers are illogical and unsustainable. But if a contract of employment specifies certain terms, it's unfair of an employer to break them.