I recognise many of the reasons that you put forward. Boards dominated by accountants are not good for social cohesion within a business but we should not forget that businesses set out to take risk for a return which with good planning will result in a profit for the risk-takers. It is accountants that do their best to influence the bottom line to please the owners and this can create unhappiness at all levels among those affected, especially when things do not go well.

In summary, your first point is bound to cause discontent. Employers will not be content if the workforce is unhappy for the reasons you state – they make their feelings known to the bosses. Your second point is also true. I worked in a small bank and found that more and more time was spent on unproductive work i.e. defending ourselves from accountants, auditors and regulators (not a bad thing but it does not give a great deal of job satisfaction). Your third point is also true but in the present economic situation, many unhappy employees/candidates have to stay put because the job opportunities are few.

Overall then, it could be said that many are unhappy, employees and employers alike, because the current situation, added to ever burgeoning regulation, law and general red tape, makes them want to give it all up and raise hens in the countryside. Chance would be a fine thing!

Happy New Year, Rick

Has the author exhibited a classic Freudian slip?

Das Euro 4th Riech? ‘Javol mein Fuhrer’.

Indeed, do our (glorious) leaders learn from history?

Long live Satire.

Adding to that, we have suddenly (mid September ) been dumped with ANOTHER additional taxation to our annual income as well as yet ANOTHER additional taxation to property owned, because we had the audacity to scrimp and save all of our lives in order to buy our own property, (which we are already taxed on anyhow). And both of these MUST be paid by end of 2011.

I will not go down the road of inflation and the cost of everyday necessities like “food”; nor shall I touch upon the subject of VAT increasing from 13% to 23% over night. Do you know that I can come to London (return) for euro 112, and yet a one way ticket to Chania Crete will cost me around Euro 130!!! Where is the sense in that?

Heating oil will cost us 50% more for 2011 then it did in 2010. How on earth can we manage, let alone OAP’s whose basic pensions are not normally more that 800 Euro. Or the unemployed who, if they are lucky, receive euro 400 for six months only. After that …. Go hungry. And then we wonder why crime rate had increased so much?

AND WHY HAVE WE ARRIVED AT THIS SITUATION? ….. The simply answer is GREEDINESS. Greediness on behalf of the politicians and super rich who do not pay taxes. The question is not who they are (we all know who they are) but why are they not made to return the money the have “stolen” over the years. Why are they not made to pay their back taxes or the national insurance owned.

AND WHY IS IT ALWAYS US, THE SIMPLE EVERY DAY WORKER WHO ENDS UP PAYING THE BILL?

I can confirm that the article is surprising as my personal experience has shown that more like 90% of bosses have psychopathic tendencies to say the least.

I consider myself in the last 10%, just don’t cross me! and I can vouch for the author of this blog, that he is definitely off his trolley, but in the nicest possible way, just don’t cross him either.

Is that what makes a good boss, they are fair until some one crosses that imaginary line, then we are quite willing to give both barrels but in a very honest way.

The most contentious part of the plan is to move from the existing calculation of benefit to “career average”. This means that the teacher who works at a lower level for many years and in their last, say, five years, wins a major promotion will be hit hard. At present their pension is calculated on the basis of their last few years. Moving to a career average will “cost” these teachers tens of thousands of pounds. Those who will be hit hardest are those who lead schools – so the head teachers unions are squeaking the loudest.

Second, all teachers will be asked to pay more into the pension pot. For many years current staff have subsidised current pensioners, and the low paid subsidise the higher paid. The government needs to call time on this, not just in teaching but across the board in the public sector. Unfortunately higher pension payments (we’re talking hundreds if not thousands extra each year) come at a time of no pay rises and higher prices.

On a small point, when I was a school governor some years ago it was very difficult for a “standard” teacher to take an actuarially reduced early pension; just no provision for it in the standard scheme.

Will I be urging my wife to strike? No. But I don’t think the government has tackled the major issue facing teachers pensions in their proposals. As your NUT quote hints teaching is moving from being a job for life into a shorter career. Youngsters who join from university get burnt out – yes, I’ve sat in secondary classes in my genteel leafy suburb and seen how our high performing young people treat teachers. People won’t put up with this for 10, 20, 30 or more years. Also, many people join teaching later in life as a second career. In neither case does the existing scheme allow them to build up a decent “pot” either to retire on or invest elsewhere. It has always been that early leavers and late joiners contribute the biggest chunk to the overall fund.

Teaching, civil service and local government pension schemes are giant ponzi frauds. The Conservatives must tackle that before the rot becomes too severe.