The rate of unemployement

[davidruddell]

Unemployed! Took redundancy from Penguin over a year ago, getting by on a few design jobs here and there to pay the cigar bills.

The missus is a very talented database designer (retail/web commerce systems) and took a short contract about three years ago, which turned into a three day a week full time, which turned into a five day a week full time.

So I am officially a house husband, ferrying kids to and from school etc.

Don't really miss my job at Penguin (had been there FAR too long) but if I was offered a full time position tomorrow (bloody unlikety, most tech and design work in my industry has been farmed out to India over the last 5 years) I'd take it like a shot.

Got an unpaid gig (Charidee) coming up but no paid work in the next month.
I don't claim benefits (other than the one for our son with CP) not 'actively' looking for work, so don't see why I should.

46 years old, I've been on the dole for 2 weeks of my working life.

Apols for the rant, finished now, will go back in cupboard!

[Struth]

Made redundant a few months ago been looking for something else but not a lot happening lucky the wife has a good job but getting bored now need something to keep me occupied and finance the purchase of some smokes.

[Soulmanure]

I'm working and mighty thankful for it. I'm fortunate enough to also find a deep meaning in my work and, dare I say it, a sense of duty. A lot of folks look at you with pity in the States when you tell them you're a high school teacher, as if suddenly noticing that a mangy, stray dog without a home is standing in front of them. Then they tell you how brave you are, etc. But teaching is a pretty profound thing when you commit to it. Still, the pay is low, the hours are long, and I'm watching axes fall every year budget decisions are made (not to mention the fact that any yearly pay increase is more or less canceled out by health care increases). I'm hanging on by a bit of a thread, but any thread that puts food on your plate is precious.

The wife, however, was making decent money as a gardener, and those jobs are drying up as people lose work. We've had to manage on my income more and more, which has not always managed to work (though there is light at the end of the tunnel come January, knock on particle board).

My heart goes out to the BOTLs who are struggling to find work and manage day to day, and to do so without the calming joy of a fine puro. No true Brother of The Leaf should be left leafless for too long.

[Simon-JG-hr]

For the people who complain about the cuts, and voted torrie, blame yourselves, and for those who never voted torrie, blame those who did !

Well, as you brought it up... As someone who voted Tory, but isn't complaining about the cuts (despite my previous job being in the public sector, and hopefully my future one too), I blame it on the last lot.

I'm afraid the cuts have to be made, the country cannot afford not too. It's shit, and it will be shit for a time to come (who knows exactly how long). The only other option is to do it later - problem then is that we'll have accured more interest etc in the intervening period and it'd require deeper/longer cuts.

There also needs to be a sensible discussion about exactly what the state should be providing - and for my money, it is considerably less than it was providing under Labour.

As for the money used to bail out the banks - hopefully it will have been a good decision made by one of the most economically inept governments in history (had Brown not sold a load of our gold - against all advice - we'd be at least ?3billion better off right now). With any luck, in a few years, we'll be able to sell the government's stake and make a tidy profit (always buy at the bottom of the market... )

[MarkSDMF]

Well, as you brought it up... As someone who voted Tory, but isn't complaining about the cuts (despite my previous job being in the public sector, and hopefully my future one too), I blame it on the last lot.

I'm afraid the cuts have to be made, the country cannot afford not too. It's shit, and it will be shit for a time to come (who knows exactly how long). The only other option is to do it later - problem then is that we'll have accured more interest etc in the intervening period and it'd require deeper/longer cuts.

There also needs to be a sensible discussion about exactly what the state should be providing - and for my money, it is considerably less than it was providing under Labour.

As for the money used to bail out the banks - hopefully it will have been a good decision made by one of the most economically inept governments in history (had Brown not sold a load of our gold - against all advice - we'd be at least ?3billion better off right now). With any luck, in a few years, we'll be able to sell the government's stake and make a tidy profit (always buy at the bottom of the market... )

Well a government had to spend money considering the lot before them (torries are making a habit of this) lack of spending.
If we still had industry in this country we wouldnt be in the mess we are in now. Tell me what happened to the British industry over the past 20/30 years ?

As for the cuts.
Too much too quick.
Do you agree with the amount of cuts they are going to make, the 7% to the defence budget, loosing up to 7000 soldiers and up to 4 front line battalions ?
IS this the right choice to make. IS the right choice putting our men and womens lifes in EVEN MORE danger by not giving them the equipment they need. IS it the RIGHT CHOICE to not give them the full extent of training they need ?

[Soulmanure]

Well a government had to spend money considering the lot before them (torries are making a habit of this) lack of spending.
If we still had industry in this country we wouldnt be in the mess we are in now. Tell me what happened to the British industry over the past 20/30 years ?

As for the cuts.
Too much too quick.
Do you agree with the amount of cuts they are going to make, the 7% to the defence budget, loosing up to 7000 soldiers and up to 4 front line battalions ?
IS this the right choice to make. IS the right choice putting our men and womens lifes in EVEN MORE danger by not giving them the equipment they need. IS it the RIGHT CHOICE to not give them the full extent of training they need ?

Just a thought here, but maybe this ought to be its own thread, and a consciously restrained one at that. I think that the issues both of you speak to are essential and, as things stand, critical. Probably many of us have a few points to throw in, including myself, but this would take us away from G-man's starting point.

[MarkSDMF]

Yeah Agreed.

However, im not sure what you mean by restrained ? :P

[Simon-JG-hr]

Do you agree with the amount of cuts they are going to make, the 7% to the defence budget, loosing up to 7000 soldiers and up to 4 front line battalions ?
IS this the right choice to make. IS the right choice putting our men and womens lifes in EVEN MORE danger by not giving them the equipment they need. IS it the RIGHT CHOICE to not give them the full extent of training they need ?

No need to shout. (Or indeed, continually mispell the word 'Tories' - they're Conservatives actually, and have been for over 150 years).

For the record, I am ex-Royal Navy, and am currently part of the TA, so this might explain the following: In the specific case you lay out, I believe you are quite correct. We've just had an SDSR which was undertaken at exactly the wrong time. As Gen Sir Mike Jackson said on BBC News a few weeks ago, you cannot set out your defence and security requirements for a whole generation based on short term financial constraints. You also have the issue of making cuts whilst still asking the armed forces to fight a war.

As for the cuts more generally. I do not agree that they are unnecessary - I am framing my thoughts as much around the question I posed earlier: what should the government actually provide. Now, that's where the actually debate comes in, as I suspect that I believe it should do a lot less than someone else believes it should (and I suspect that there are those who believe it should do even less than what I think it should).

Well a government had to spend money considering the lot before them (torries are making a habit of this) lack of spending.

If you haven't got it, you simply can't/shouldn't spend it. (Otherwise you end up in the mire were in now...)

If we still had industry in this country we wouldnt be in the mess we are in now. Tell me what happened to the British industry over the past 20/30 years ?

Immediately following the mine-closures - often cited as Conservative mis-management of industry - British coal production actually increased. Admittidly, over all of Thatcher's 11 years in power, coal production fell by 33%; however, whilst under 11 years of Labour 'rule' (1997-2008), it fell by 64%.

Manufacturing declined far more rapidly under the Labour government than under the previous Conservative administration (according to the Office of National Statistics, whilst Labour were still in power). Indeed, its share of the economy all but halved between 1997 and 2009.

[bopmachine]

Im only going to throw this out there - from my perspective those who need thier money the most to live will be paying more taxes, and those who need it the least more. I was in the USA during the Reagan years, and I can tell you first hand trickle down economics simply do not work.

[cohibaIV]

If you put people on the dole...does that not cost the GOVERMENT money??


Anyhow


Joined the Merchant Navy as a 16 year old to serve a apprenticeship and left 5 years later..

After many engineering jobs and five redundancies I joined a rail company called Carillion. Six years on and with college sponsorship I also now have a degree (at 38) and a job that I love...

I know I am lucky as ALL rail companies have or are laying off as Network rail just will not allow work to be done midweek now and no company can afford to employ staff seven days a week due to this...we are now a project company but a majority of the staff we employ are now contractors..

So, god YES.For now I feel very lucky to have a job that I enjoy and support my great family.

CIV

[MarkSDMF]

Well it wasnt just the coal industry that suffered, what about steel ? Automobile production etc. ?

I believe the reason that the production kept falling after Thatcher was because no-one knew what to do after the collapse of everything that went on. It wasnt through decision to 'not produce it'

''For the record, I am ex-Royal Navy, and am currently part of the TA, so this might explain the following: In the specific case you lay out, I believe you are quite correct. We've just had an SDSR which was undertaken at exactly the wrong time. As Gen Sir Mike Jackson said on BBC News a few weeks ago, you cannot set out your defence and security requirements for a whole generation based on short term financial constraints. You also have the issue of making cuts whilst still asking the armed forces to fight a war.''


Al-right, we are getting somewhere here.
So you agree that SDSR was stupidity ATM.
And you also agree that you cant make cuts to the Defence Sector whilst at War ?


As far as other sectors are concerned, I'm not sure, i would be lying if i even tried to guess what was going on there.

As for spelling and grammar, is it that much of a concern for you about my English is ? if it is, i sincerely apo-apo-apo ahhh apologize.

The capital letters are not shouting, however that is done on the internet, but merely trying to make a point.

[daverave999]

I'm thankful enough to be in a job I believe is stable but you never know really. Cuts in wages have to be made where I work but I cover a lot of bases so hopefully it won't be my wages that get the chop.
I'm trying a few other things via the internet at the moment as I'd like to be self-employed but it's a long way off...

Not wishing to stray into politics but if " we " hadn't spent it we wouldn't need to find the cash to pay it back.

As someone who voted Tory, but isn't complaining about the cuts (despite my previous job being in the public sector, and hopefully my future one too), I blame it on the last lot.

Even though I didn't vote Conservative and likely never would, I agree.

[cohibaIV]

Is this a politics thread?? Should we go down that road?? I should not have made my opening comment IMHO??

[eggopp]

Hijacked by politics

[daverave999]

Hijacked by politics

LOL! First mention was from you!