'Bawbags' and Equal Pay
Glasgow readers continue to give Glen 'pelters' over his idiotic claim in the Evening Times that those fighting the City Council for equal pay are 'greedy witches'
B
M
C
Glen's a clown, he wouldn't last one shift if he had a job as a carer
J
total nugget
L
Witches and Bawbags (12/10/17)
Glasgow's equal pay claimants are distinctly unimpressed at Glen's ignorant jibe that they're all just 'greedy witches'.
"Glen just a bawbag"
L
Short, sharp and to the point if you ask me - and for the uninitiated, non-Glaswegian readers out there here's what a 'bawbag' looks like.
Calling Glasgow's 'Greedy Witches' (12/10/17)
I read The Evening Times coverage of Nicola Sturgeon's speech on Tuesday in which the First Minister pledged to 'fix' the injustice suffered by low paid women workers in Glasgow City Council on the basis of 'equal pay for work of equal value'.
But I laughed like a drain when I came across the readers' comments section in which a 'chap' calling himself Glen denounced equal pay claimants as 'greedy witches'.
"These women are not interested in getting the same pay as men. If they were, why didn't they campaign for men's wages to be cut down to their level? For this reason, they are a bunch of greedy witches! All they'll actually do with their "ill-gotten" gains is drink it down the pub."
Glen
Now if you ask me, Glen is an egg sandwich or two short of a decent picnic, but his dumb comment shows why the fight for equal pay in Glasgow (and elsewhere) has been such a struggle for so many years.
Though I am pleased to say that another Evening Times reader named Mark (not me, I promise) rode to the rescue of the 'Glasgow Witches' with the following comment:
"You sound like a women hiding behind a mans name and bitter for some reason but the facts are that its about predominately female jobs that were under paid which also includes men so get your facts right before you spout about women being witches for something they are rightfully entitled to as are men."
Mark
Now Mark put Glen firmly in his place so there's no need for me to say much more, apart from the fact that their exchange reminded me of that famous old Glasgow saying, "I'd rather be a greedy witch than a stupid wanker".
Now Mark put Glen firmly in his place so there's no need for me to say much more, apart from the fact that their exchange reminded me of that famous old Glasgow saying, "I'd rather be a greedy witch than a stupid wanker".
By the way, the ET also reported that there were 'some within the SNP' at the City Chambers less keen than others about an equal pay settlement - before going on to quote an anonymous council source who said:
“The boss has now publicly backed the council leader in delivering our promise to the workers and the electorate to finally resolve this scandal we’ve inherited. If there was any ambiguity about the Glasgow City Government’s intention to fix what we said we would there isn’t now.”
I think that's about right, although it does have to be said that settlement negotiations have still to get underway and that the City Council still has to 'come clean' about the details of how its WPBR pay arrangements favoured traditional bonus earning male jobs.
The Fight for Equal Pay in Glasgow
Now we're not out of the woods yet and as I said yesterday the job's not done until it's done which means a settlement of all the outstanding equal pay claims.
Nicola Sturgeon's words at the SNP conference represented a big step forward if you ask me, but we are still waiting on the City Council 'coming clean' before settlement negotiations can begin in earnest.
So the next couple of months will be crucial and it's important that everyone plays their part by sharing information from the blog site, for example, or 'getting involved' if problems crop up that need to be raised with Glasgow's MSPs and MPs.
In other words, knowledge is power and people who know what's going on are much less likely to have the will pulled over their eyes - and as I never get fed up reminding readers: 'Many Hands Make Light Work'.
I would like to think posting this blog on SNP pages, tweets and emails had contributed to the First Minister speaking out. As you said Mark. ''Many hands make light work.'' I am glad Nicola Sturgeon decided to include this very important issue and gave her word to thousands that they will fix it.
I would like to think posting this blog on SNP pages, tweets and emails had contributed to the First Minister speaking out. As you said Mark. ''Many hands make light work.'' I am glad Nicola Sturgeon decided to include this very important issue and gave her word to thousands that they will fix it.
T
I just want to express what fantastic work from action 4 equality, stefan, mark and francis continually post on the equal pay. It a wealth of information thank you all most sincerely for your continued hard work its so appreciated.
L
Me also thanks x a million.
T
She said that from the start ..hope she sticks to her word x
L
Never mind time we’ve waited long enough, get it sorted
K
Give us a date then don't keep us hanging on
L
Just watched her say that it may take time but the SNP will sort it.
L
A play on words again!
Well Nicola Sturgeon certainly delivered the goods in her leader's speech to the SNP conference earlier today.
Here's what the MSP for Glasgow Southside had to say although let me add that the First Minister's words were also delivered with real passion and conviction.
How's this for shameful and shameless behaviour from a Scottish delegate to the 2017 Labour Party conference in Brighton.
The truth is that the pay arrangements judged to be 'unfit for purpose' by Scotland's highest civl court, the Court of Session, were put in place by a Labour run council in 2007 with the support of the local Labour supporting unions: the GMB, Unison and Unite.
The new SNP led Glasgow City Council have some way to go in clearing up this mess and if you ask me, they should not have sought leave to appeal the unanimous Court of Session decision because the council's WPBR pay arrangements are indefensible.
But the old-fashioned Labour and trade union left has been 'part of the problem' over equal pay for years and it's the absolute height of hypocrisy for them to try and lay the blame in Glasgow at the door of the SNP.
I just want to express what fantastic work from action 4 equality, stefan, mark and francis continually post on the equal pay. It a wealth of information thank you all most sincerely for your continued hard work its so appreciated.
L
Me also thanks x a million.
T
She said that from the start ..hope she sticks to her word x
L
Never mind time we’ve waited long enough, get it sorted
K
Give us a date then don't keep us hanging on
L
Just watched her say that it may take time but the SNP will sort it.
L
A play on words again!
L
First Minister and Equal Pay (10/10/17)
Well Nicola Sturgeon certainly delivered the goods in her leader's speech to the SNP conference earlier today.
Here's what the MSP for Glasgow Southside had to say although let me add that the First Minister's words were also delivered with real passion and conviction.
"For decades, Glasgow has been run by Labour.
In May, that came to an end.
The cronies and time-servers are out.
Fresh ideas, Susan Aitken and the SNP are in.
The difference is already clear.Under Labour, a bitter school janitor dispute rumbled on for months.
Within weeks, it was resolved by the SNP.
For years, under Labour, women were denied the equal pay they are entitled to.
Conference
It may take us a bit of time to fix Labour’s mess, but I make this promise today.
Fix it we will.
The injustice suffered by low paid women in this city will be put right.
Equal pay for equal work, denied for too long, will be delivered by the SNP."
Glasgow and Equal Pay (10/10/17)
I happen to be near a TV this afternoon so I am going to listen to Nicola Sturgeon's speech to the SNP's 2017 annual conference which is being held in Glasgow - the First Minister's political backyard.
No doubt this will be a wide ranging speech, but I will be interested to hear if the First Minister mentions the fight for equal pay in Glasgow City Council which has been raging for the past 10 years.
I certainly hope the issue comes up because Glasgow is the First Minister's political backyard and if you ask me, the thousands of low paid women council workers who have been cheated and robbed of their rights for years deserve the active support of their local MSPs and MPs.
In May, that came to an end.
The cronies and time-servers are out.
Fresh ideas, Susan Aitken and the SNP are in.
The difference is already clear.Under Labour, a bitter school janitor dispute rumbled on for months.
Within weeks, it was resolved by the SNP.
For years, under Labour, women were denied the equal pay they are entitled to.
Conference
It may take us a bit of time to fix Labour’s mess, but I make this promise today.
Fix it we will.
The injustice suffered by low paid women in this city will be put right.
Equal pay for equal work, denied for too long, will be delivered by the SNP."
Now it's been a long hard fight to get where we are today and, at times, it certainly did feel as if the bosses, bullies and bureaucrats would get their way.
So I won't be mothballing the A4ES campaign or standing down my blog site anytime soon because the job's not done until it's done - which means a settlement of all the outstanding equal pay claims.
Nonetheless, the First Minister's words are bold and unequivocal and for that Nicola Sturgeon, Susan Aitken and the SNP all deserve great credit.
The task now is to get down to serious negotiations on how to best deliver equal pay for work of equal value in Glasgow which was, of course, the original intention of the landmark Single Status (Equal Pay) Agreement in 1999.
For this to happen City Council officials need to come clean about the WPBR pay scheme and how it has 'looked after' the interests of traditional male jobs over the past 10 years.
And if there are any 'cronies or time-servers' who are tempted to frustrate this process, my advice is to get out of the way while you still can - because the winds of change seem to be blowing through the corridors of Glasgow City Council at long last.
Glasgow and Equal Pay (10/10/17)
I happen to be near a TV this afternoon so I am going to listen to Nicola Sturgeon's speech to the SNP's 2017 annual conference which is being held in Glasgow - the First Minister's political backyard.
No doubt this will be a wide ranging speech, but I will be interested to hear if the First Minister mentions the fight for equal pay in Glasgow City Council which has been raging for the past 10 years.
I certainly hope the issue comes up because Glasgow is the First Minister's political backyard and if you ask me, the thousands of low paid women council workers who have been cheated and robbed of their rights for years deserve the active support of their local MSPs and MPs.
Glasgow - Height of Hypocrisy (26/09/17)
How's this for shameful and shameless behaviour from a Scottish delegate to the 2017 Labour Party conference in Brighton.
The truth is that the pay arrangements judged to be 'unfit for purpose' by Scotland's highest civl court, the Court of Session, were put in place by a Labour run council in 2007 with the support of the local Labour supporting unions: the GMB, Unison and Unite.
The new SNP led Glasgow City Council have some way to go in clearing up this mess and if you ask me, they should not have sought leave to appeal the unanimous Court of Session decision because the council's WPBR pay arrangements are indefensible.
But the old-fashioned Labour and trade union left has been 'part of the problem' over equal pay for years and it's the absolute height of hypocrisy for them to try and lay the blame in Glasgow at the door of the SNP.
