Inflation is painful and doubly painful in a country like the UK where average earnings have remained unchanged for more than 15 years. All that gentle and slow whittling away of wages has now been massively accelerated by high inflation and a government determined to force down public sector pay.
The gap between what teachers, nurses, doctors and civil servants earned 10-15 years ago and what they earn now is massive and it going to get far, far worse.
The consequences are already being felt with too few teachers joining the profession, nurses and doctors fleeing to Australia and huge turn over in government departments.
People like nice, safe, secure state jobs that serve the country but not at any price. When you can earn more at Tesco stacking shelves than in the classroom, teachers vote with their feet.
What is worse is that the right wing media and the government are obviously eying the final salary pensions of state workers.
They will come for those pensions on the grounds that the private sector has already impoverished its workers old age by abolishing their’s, so why should tax payers provide state workers with good pensions? A beggar your neighbour argument that will be illustrated with examples of Sir Humphrey’s living in luxury but not former paratroopers living in the cold.
At that point the ability of the state to recruit staff will collapse and they will all wring their hands wondering why. But it is increasingly clear that the right knows the price of everything and the value of nothing and the huge damage that is doing will continue.
Economics, trade and Brexit, not necessarily in that order but the dog always comes first.
By Jonty Bloom Media
Some areas have already had final salary pensions changed to career average calculations, so this is already begun