Holding our politcians to account
Equal pay is one of the biggest issues to hit Scotland's public services in recent years - yet our elected councillors and MSPs have been a quiet as church mice.
Why? Because many of them were in very senior and influential positions years ago when Scotland's councils, for example, promised to eradicate pay discrimination back in 1999. But the employers and the trade unions simply sat back and did nothing until Action 4 Equality and Stefan Cross came along.
So, the politicians prefer to turn a blind eye to the widespread pay discrimination that still exists in Scotland's councils and the NHS - and in any event they can always blame someone else for the failure to put things right.Whatever this is it's not leadership - and the truth is that Scotland's public service workers deserve a great deal better.
On almost any other issue, the politicians would be asking pointed questions and demanding straight answers.
Why did the employers and the unions sit on their backsides for so long?
Why do the employers try to cheat people out of the back pay they are entitled to receive?
Why do the trade unions keep their own members in the dark on equal pay?
Why are the thousands of people who have retired since 1999 not compensated for their loss?
Why are the employers and unions still trying to hide the size of the pay gap for women workers?
Without Action 4 Equality and Stefan Cross the scandal of widespread pay discrimination would be exactly the same today. No one would have been offered a single penny in compensation - not even those who have been bullied and pressurised into accepting partial compensation payments, instead of the same pay as the men
The Scottish Parliament and Scotland's councils are up for election on the same day this year - May 3rd 2007. So, when the politicians come looking for your vote - ask them where they stand on equal pay and ask them exactly what they have been doing to hold Scotland's council and NHS employers to account!
In a future posting we'll list the details of all the MSPs who were senior councillors or trade union officials back in 1999 - should make interesting reading.
Why? Because many of them were in very senior and influential positions years ago when Scotland's councils, for example, promised to eradicate pay discrimination back in 1999. But the employers and the trade unions simply sat back and did nothing until Action 4 Equality and Stefan Cross came along.
So, the politicians prefer to turn a blind eye to the widespread pay discrimination that still exists in Scotland's councils and the NHS - and in any event they can always blame someone else for the failure to put things right.Whatever this is it's not leadership - and the truth is that Scotland's public service workers deserve a great deal better.
On almost any other issue, the politicians would be asking pointed questions and demanding straight answers.
Why did the employers and the unions sit on their backsides for so long?
Why do the employers try to cheat people out of the back pay they are entitled to receive?
Why do the trade unions keep their own members in the dark on equal pay?
Why are the thousands of people who have retired since 1999 not compensated for their loss?
Why are the employers and unions still trying to hide the size of the pay gap for women workers?
Without Action 4 Equality and Stefan Cross the scandal of widespread pay discrimination would be exactly the same today. No one would have been offered a single penny in compensation - not even those who have been bullied and pressurised into accepting partial compensation payments, instead of the same pay as the men
The Scottish Parliament and Scotland's councils are up for election on the same day this year - May 3rd 2007. So, when the politicians come looking for your vote - ask them where they stand on equal pay and ask them exactly what they have been doing to hold Scotland's council and NHS employers to account!
In a future posting we'll list the details of all the MSPs who were senior councillors or trade union officials back in 1999 - should make interesting reading.
