It came as no surprise to me to read an article in The Guardian today saying that workers are now £1,600 a year poorer due to the state of the economy. This is the finding of a study.
UK workers £1,600 a year poorer
Did we really need a study to tell us this? Many people are losing their jobs at the moment; those people in jobs are made to feel grateful for those jobs and given no pay increase but extra work; University fees have sky-rocketed penalising a generation for previous mismanagement and greed; there are no jobs for the massive number of graduates studying a myriad of courses; the graduates will have a huge debt round their necks for years; prices continue to go up – and I could go on.
Does the majority agree with what is going on? Well, the workers who are now £1,600 a year poorer are unlikely to. Disillusioned by years of stories of how politicians have exploited their allowances to subsidise and fund their extravagant lifestyles, family members and multiple homes, and how shareholders and top executives have hoarded profits, what is the mere mortal supposed to do? Some choose to lose themselves in reality television served as a diversion; others sit at dinner tables and in pubs round the country and bemoan what has and what is happening.
Everyone surely deserves a chance in life, but it seems class divides are growing. How representative of the mere mortals are our politicians?
The Guardian article says that real-terms wage losses will rise as the UK continues through a 12-year ‘dive’. It seems we can look forward to real-terms wage losses reaching an average of £8,500
The TUC general secretary, Brendan Barber, said: “It is clear that austerity isn’t working. We need a new economic approach that delivers for all workers and their families.”
A common-sense approach may be to go back to basics. We need a shift in expectations; in this celebrity culture; in this lack of work ethic; that the country owes people a living; that parents don’t need to take responsibility for the children they deliver into this world; that marriage isn’t forever; that blame always rests elsewhere; that family, community and other people don’t matter – they do! Less bureaucracy and greater efficiency would help in some sectors.
I remain hopeful.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2012/oct/04/workers-poorer-state-economy-study