Are we approaching the spring of discontent?
Rail Union leaders have confirmed that their members will bring the rail network to its knees after the Easter bank holiday weekend with four days of stoppages beginning on Tuesday. Union chiefs have been vocal in their belief that they will "close down" the rail network as a number of rush hour walkouts have been planned. Just weeks before an expected UK election this is the last thing which Gordon Brown and the Labour Party needs.
Even though the union has confirmed that the post-Easter dates were chosen so as not to take in the Easter weekend and cause maximum disruption, it is believed that three out of four trains in the UK will be affected. This is just the latest in a long line of industrial action planned in the weeks and months ahead. The British Airways strike has been grabbing the headlines of late and we even saw the Chancellor and the Prime Minister having to cross a picket line outside Westminster prior to the budget earlier this week.
The last few days have seen the Conservative Party lead over Labour reduced significantly in the polls but many believe prolonged industrial action will cause immeasurable damage to the Labour party movement. Could this bout of industrial action cost the government the chance of being re-elected or at the very least of playing a prominent role in a hung Parliament?
Share this..
Related stories
CBI Survey Suggests That The Economic Slowdown Is Spreading
A recent survey by the CBI has highlighted the fact that the UK economic slowdown is spreading to new areas of the economy. The professional services sector, which includes the likes of lawyers and accountants, is set to see profits fall over the next 12 months even though these are services which many thought to be more recession proof than most.
When you take into account that...
Inflation Rate Being Squeezed Higher
While officially the general rate of inflation may be just under 5% at the moment this is nowhere near the figure which is emerging from the food sector. It has today been announced that in general the cost of food in the UK is increasing by over 10% per annum - over twice the general rate of inflation. While must of the recent rise was attributed to an 11.9% rise in the cost of fresh produce, t...
Read MoreTougher penalties for non- payment of National Living Wage
02/09/2015 When the National Living Wage is introduced in April 2016, the government will also implement harsher penalties for employers who do not pay their workers the £7.20 an hour minimum. These penalties will be tougher than the ones faced by employers at the moment for not paying workers minimum wage, which stands at £6.50 an hour. A new team will be established within HMRC to pur...
Read MoreRecovery in the services sector is not all good news
It has been revealed over the last few days that activity and business levels in the UK services sector have picked up sharply. While many are viewing this as a definitive sign that the UK recession is nearing an end there are some worrying signs accompanying this report.
While there is no doubt that business levels have been rising over the last few weeks and months, it would appea...
Confusion in the UK workplace
UK unions are today on the case of the UK worker with news that employers are refusing to give U.K.-based workers priority over foreign staff in the engineering and construction industry. On one hand the unions are looking to protect U.K.-based workers while on the other, employers are concerned about their potential liabilities under the UK law.
Yet again we are seeing Gordon Brown...