support for the british worker

[LabR@t]

PS: Considering the ramifications of that referendum, and the ever-declining position in which it renders us, shouldn't there be a recurring referendum on say a 5 or 10 yearly basis to prevent people in the present suffering the consequences of decisions taken before their time? That is, afterall, why we have general elections (in principle at least! )

totally agree those before us thought they were doing the right thing trying to tie up europe to protect us from the spectre of the cold war, times change We should not be stuck with yesterdays generations decision.

 

[Azagoth]

Anyone remember Brown's "British jobs for British workers" speech from a couple of years ago? Just goes to show how full of bull**** this current government is.

They say one thing yet do something completely different and then try to worm their way out of it with even more lies. Just how long are we going to bend over, part the old cheeks and let them shaft us senseless?

Other Countries look after their own first, regardless of what the idiots at the EU say. So why are we the only Country that bends over and takes it from Europe?

 

[Rroff]

If British workers have the right skills and attitude and can do the work for a competitive price, they'll win the contracts. It's not a difficult concept but it seems to have utterly baffled all concerned.

It reminds me of the misguided patriotism of the 'buy British' mentality. Rather than demand high-quality goods at competitive prices, we instead allowed companies free rein to knock out all kinds of badly made and badly designed rubbish. As long as it was British rubbish, we'd buy it.

If the British workers don't have the skills or can't do the job for a reasonable price then they need to start taking a hard look at the reasons why. Or they could just bleat about British jobs and British workers instead. Do they genuinely expect to win work on the basis of their nationality?

The laughable fact is that this recession will last a damn sight longer if they get their way and protectionism is resurrected.

So we should be ripped off my greedy bosses and work for a pitance just to line someone elses pocket? I think not - get a grip man.

I agree that a lot of British people are lazy and do a half arsed job with no care or consideration, but thats not the point - the point is this country is going down the crapper and giving jobs to foreigners at the expense of the natives is just accelerating this.

 

[mario_bros]

British workers can't compete on price with a lot of foreign labour due to the high cost of living in this country.
How can workers with families and mortgages here undercut workers brought in from outside who are given cheap accommodation in their own little ghetto for the time they're here (so little of their wages will find their way into the local economy), and then return home with bulging wallets to somewhere the cost of living is much lower than in the UK.

 

[squawkBOX]

I despise this debate, I really do. As generally those who are "British jobs for British workers" generally follow the general trend of:

1) lower skilled jobs
2) don't have the ability to adapt to change
3) have no understanding about the economic benefits of comparative advantage.

I would rather follow the model of comparative advantage - with free trade and those who have the best skills at conducting a particular activity doing so.

The upside of this policy, is that it would force the country to become a highly skilled/educated and help not just on the job front but many other elements in society.

 

[mario_bros]

About the UK ad the EU:

I think that the EU was a need, with the globalization, countries can not isolate themselves anymore, they shouldn't. Products and services are not limited by borders any more, that is why the EU exists. Nowadays being isolated is not a good option, when everybody is going the other way around. England should be an Island, but only geographically.

 

[RDM]

Who is this "we" to whom you refer? I'm a 31yr old, born in 1977 after this choice was made.

Wasn't it 1974 the dastardly deed was done, and wouldn't one have needed to be 18 or over to participate in the referendum...and wouldn't that mean that nobody under the age of 53 today could possibly have had any involvement?

"We"!?!

We as a nation. I wasn't old enough then either. But that is pretty much a moot point. We are bound by the decisions of many generations of people in many international agreements. Do we also need to reratifying them every 10 years?

The way the system works is that if you want something changed once it has been implemented, then vote for someone who will change it or form a party over it and try and implement the change yourself. Government wouldn't work if we had to reexamine every single bit of legislation every 5-10 years.

Considering the laughable amount of support UKIP I am not sure if withdrawing from the EU is high on many people's priority list.

 

[[TW]Fox]

lets show some support for the British worker enough is enough its time we the British working public were heard

No thanks. If they wish to accept the risks involved in being a contractor in pursuit of higher pay its their own decision and they are not owed anything.

 

[LabR@t]

The Voice from a foreign worker in the UK:

I agree in part with you. I know that many foreigners just come here for money and to take advantage of some benefits, then they go back to their countries.
But that is only part of the story.

As a foreigner, I can see every day that I do work with a better quality than most of my colleagues (nationals) at work.
Also as a foreigner, in the last two years I have contributed with my qualified work and taxes to this country, even more than many nationals.

For me it is sad to see here in the UK, that lots of young people don't go to Uni, or even they don't finish College. I have a degree in IT, in one of the Unis with the best reputation in South America. And only here in England I have seen that many people are at positions of "managers" even when they have just a basic education.

I think that the best thing British people (specially young people) can do, is to study and to work offering quality.

Young people/Brits, just study, and offer quality in everything you do, that is the best way to compete.

have you seen how much it costs to get a decent education in this country! Parents can no longer afford to pay to put kids through uni.

there is and always be some who don't want to work but there are 1000's of freshly redundant who do want to work.
i am not saying we don't need skilled workers comming to this country to fill some positions but when you have 1000's coming here for semi skilled work ist just wrong

 

[LabR@t]

I despise this debate, I really do. As generally those who are "British jobs for British workers" generally follow the general trend of:

1) lower skilled jobs
2) don't have the ability to adapt to change
3) have no understanding about the economic benefits of comparative advantage.

I would rather follow the model of comparative advantage - with free trade and those who have the best skills at conducting a particular activity doing so.

The upside of this policy, is that it would force the country to become a highly skilled/educated and help not just on the job front but many other elements in society.

And what about those who have not got the skills to be trained or who education is not an option you are assigning them to the scrap heap the underclass a lot of these people like to work manual work but deserve the right to an honest days work for an honest days pay. Are you saying we write this people off to a life on benefits? we need the majority of our nationals to be in employment not stuck at the bottom just so we can provide jobs for those who are more fortunate to have a better education from other countries.


"British jobs for British People"

 

[Dolph]

Employment is a contract for exchange of skills for money, why should companies be restricted from getting the best value for money based on an irrelevant factor?

 

[[TW]Fox]

Parents can no longer afford to pay to put kids through uni.

Thats handy, because they no longer need too - there are two seperate loans offered, one for day to day living costs and another for the increased tuition fees. The parents need not pay any of the fees at all if they dont want to.

Handy that, eh?

 

[Pudney]

Employment is a contract for exchange of skills for money, why should companies be restricted from getting the best value for money based on an irrelevant factor?

Exactly, the tidal wave of "British work for British people" should examine why they (most likely) go to shops and buy the south american fruit/vegetables and other produce from around the globe. Capitalism is great when it saves you money firsthand, but when that same economic force creates a perfectly understandable business decision to go for the cheaper labour option a storm is created.

 

[LabR@t]

Thats handy, because they no longer need too - there are two seperate loans offered, one for day to day living costs and another for the increased tuition fees. The parents need not pay any of the fees at all if they dont want to.

Handy that, eh?

and be saddled with tens of 1000's pounds of debt just as you start you career, yeah real handy that!

wonder why people are so far in debt and needed to borrow so much just to get on the property ladder? when years are spent paying back student debts

 

[[TW]Fox]

and be saddled with tens of 1000's pounds of debt just as you start you career, yeah real handy that!

It doesn't matter if your student debt is £10,000, £100,000 or £1,000,000, its paid back at the same negligable amount per month. It makes no difference, however much you've got you'll be paying it back for many years at a paltry rate so why is it a concern?

 

[LabR@t]

Exactly, the tidal wave of "British work for British people" should examine why they (most likely) go to shops and buy the south american fruit/vegetables and other produce from around the globe. Capitalism is great when it saves you money firsthand, but when that same economic force creates a perfectly understandable business decision to go for the cheaper labour option a storm is created.

You be lucky to find any British products all our manufacturing industries have been savaged down the years. The main factors in our economy are financial and retail where is our hard industry our manufacturing industry gone?

 

[[TW]Fox]

You be lucky to find any British products all our manufacturing industries have been savaged down the years. The main factors in our economy are financial and retail where is our hard industry our manufacturing industry gone?

Manufacturing becomes less sustainable the more a country develops. The more a country develops, the higher the standard of living of its citizens. The higher the standard of living of its citizens, the higher the wages they demand. The higher the wages they demand, the higher the cost of having a manufacturing base in the country and the higher the cost of the products the country manufacturers.

 

[Dolph]

You be lucky to find any British products all our manufacturing industries have been savaged down the years. The main factors in our economy are financial and retail where is our hard industry our manufacturing industry gone?

Mainly down the tubes because of excessive union demands making british factories uncompetative (leading to people not buying their products) or the products being rubbish (leading to people not buying the products)

The people who killed british manufacturing were ultimately the british people.

 

[Pudney]

You be lucky to find any British products all our manufacturing industries have been savaged down the years. The main factors in our economy are financial and retail where is our hard industry our manufacturing industry gone?

The same way that everything goes in a global (not european) capitalism. To the cheapest option. Us as the consumers are to blame for it as we will opt for cheaper goods. Ever wondered why half the things made of plastic come from china? Because we've (yes, that would almost certainly include you) driven it to the cheapest option. And now you want to complain of that?

Oh, and no offence, my student debt is no great weight around my shoulders. It may be 5 figures worth of debt but £10 a month isnt exactly the greatest burden in the world.

 

[Chimerical]

You be lucky to find any British products all our manufacturing industries have been savaged down the years. The main factors in our economy are financial and retail where is our hard industry our manufacturing industry gone?

Taken from another thread.

The UK is the seventh largest manufacturing nation on Earth

2007 Manufacturing output ($bn, 1990)
$1,724 United States
$1,084 China, People's Republic of
$978 Japan
$525 Germany
$318 France
$260 Italy
$232 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
$214 Republic of Korea
$189 Russian Federation
$177 Brazil
$152 Spain
$148 India
$142 Canada
$106 Poland
$99 Sweden
$83 Mexico
$80 Indonesia
$72 Turkey
$72 Argentina
$71 Netherlands
$63 Switzerland
$63 Finland
$57 Australia

http://unstats.un.org/unsd/snaama/dnllist.asp

EDIT to add:

2007 Exports of goods and services ($bn, 1990)
$1,410 United States
$1,280 Germany
$1,152 China, People's Republic of
$772 Japan
$652 Republic of Korea
$622 France
$560 Russian Federation
$532 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
$467 Netherlands
$432 Hong Kong SAR of China
$366 Italy
$350 Canada
$285 Spain
$282 Singapore
$280 Belgium
$241 Mexico
$227 Sweden
$185 Switzerland
$163 India
$162 Ireland
$160 Austria
$152 Malaysia
$120 Australia