Wednesday 8 June 2011

The "Strike" That Dare Not Speak Its Name II

Oscar Wilde
It seems that PCS has managed to tie itself up in knots over the "strike" action that it has planned for this week.

A loyal reader advises me that HMRC are going to dock the pay of all employees who take part in the "strike".

I am further advised that PCS have posted a response to queries they are receiving from their members on their website (note, I cannot find it on the site), which I quote word for word as sent to me by the loyal reader (if this quote is inaccurate please advise and I will correct/remove):

"The main bulk of the questions we are getting here, and no doubt the questions you are getting from your members, are about whether time should be recorded as flexi leave or industrial action.

The fact that we are asking members to be out of work at set times amounts to strike action. The first thing to make clear to members is that it is not for PCS to determine whether the department deduct time or money for taking strike action.

What we can say is that the department cannot take both time and money for the same period of action.

Equally, however, in some areas the department want members to record the whole time as a flexi debit so that members simply take time off work and then have to work the time back again at some later point.

Therefore, we are asking members to record at least some time as industrial action.
"

All clear now?

Seems like a complete mess to me.

Tax does have to be taxing.

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16 comments:

  1. Looks like PCS have got so close to the management that the chaotic way HMRC management operate has rubbed of a bit.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Clear as mud.

    The management must be laughing their tits off.

    ReplyDelete
  3. 11:14, HMRC management might get worried now that PCS are using the same style of organisation as them.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Could it be that PCS is treating its members like adults and exercising their democratic rights to choose whether they take part in the action 'officially' or not?

    If PCS issued a 'diktat' saying their members must not use flexi this would most likely be unlswful.

    ReplyDelete
  5. 8 June 2011 11:30

    How dare you question Ken or his acolytes. Countdown to posts claiming you are a management sockpuppet 3....2....1....go



    Got to say it didn't seem that complicated to me.

    ReplyDelete
  6. I still feel that the only action that would ever work is a permanent work to rule (by all staff).

    ReplyDelete
  7. I agree but it won't happen. A bit like the overtime ban.

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  8. http://local.stv.tv/east-kilbride/news/19084-tax-office-staff-walk-out-over-sick-leave/

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  9. I left HMRC a few years ago.

    But earlier around 11:30 I met a former colleague outside a building on the 11:30 action.
    He said it was chaos inside with uncertainity about where people stood. And the usual people who wouldnt leave their desks incase they fell out with their manager.
    Since staff from a contact centre a few streets away had walked out en masse, thousands of calls started ringing through to this processing office!!! So the people who ignored the Unions request were hammered with two phones up to each ear!
    HA HA HA!

    HMRC really is shite.

    ReplyDelete
  10. The ADL had an automated response on it earlier. The others must not have bothered. LOL. Cue media outrage

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  11. Fred Karno's army hasn't got a patch on PCS organisational ability.
    If this particular industrial action is an example of their abilities heaven help the oppressed staff.
    I'm not sure that it could have been organised with less effect but at least it's out of the way now.
    Heads ought to roll for the poor picture presented and opportunity lost.
    I agree PCS are to close to management and have forgotten who they should be representing, those that pay some hefty subs!

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  12. Be interested what PCS' response is the the upcoming announcement on June 15 regarding staffing levels in HMRC by 2015.

    HMRC's people plan will show that ExCom is recommending 10,000 full-time-equivilent posts being lost by 2015 when compared against the staff figures as at April 2011.

    If you work in HMRC and thought you were safe after Workforce Change, you're wrong. More buildings will close and more locations won't have a local tax centre any more.

    Good luck to our customers trying to contact us in the future - you think it's bad now, then roll on 2015...

    This announcement will come just days after the Grand Dame stated that if each member of staff had one less day sick per year, then HMRC would collect an extra £312M tax and answer an extra 3.1M calls.

    Dame Leslie - working hard to put the N in CUT.

    By the way, PCS will do fuck all regarding this.

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  13. 8 June 2011 21:36

    Spot on.

    Anyone who thinks theyre in the clear in 2015 after the 10,000 are out will get a grenade up the ass when HMRC decide they want rid of another batch of thousands by such and such a date.
    10,000? I wouldnt believe a word they said.

    They'll grind people down for as long as it takes to reduce that workforce.

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  14. 8 June 21:36

    LOL re "N". So, does this mean Ken is now attracting Radio 4 listeners, or Mail readers? ;)

    Stew G

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  15. If members paid PCS the sort of dues that they need to get paid to do a proper job then they'd do a good job of looking after PCS members.

    But you don't so they don't.

    Why complain when you aren't paying up?

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  16. Has 16:54 got any idea of the monthly subs for PCS?
    does 16:54 know how much in terms of millions is being spent on the new PCS HQ?

    Over to you...

    ReplyDelete