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Most jobs do not require you to undergo an institutionalising training process, nor to place yourself at risk of violent death, nor to move house or even count

by gaius 9y ago

Most jobs do not require you to undergo an institutionalising training process, nor to place yourself at risk of violent death, nor to move house or even country every couple of years, nor many other things.

robin_reala 9y ago
But it’s your choice to undergo that. No-one in modern Britain is forced into military service.
- gaius 9y ago
  Well, it was your choice to work for the UK gov, why should you be entitled to a gold-plated final salary pension? Because it's - supposedly - a reasonable expectation for the opportunity cost of taking a different kind of job than you would find working for a corporation. Nowadays of course public sector salaries outstrip the private sector, so probably the pension should be scrapped.
  - shubb 9y ago
    Public sector jobs pay maybe better than market in rural and economically dead areas of the UK. In the South East, they generally pay worse. If you don't believe me, go find your job in the civil service website and remember there is no salary negotiation. Senior civil servants make good bank though and have very nice revolving door opportunities, so it's a good career option financially if you expect to get there (i.e. elite education and very good at debates). The final salary pensions you mention have mostly been closed to new entrants - now you just buy into a fund and cash it for an annuity like anywhere else, with like 3-5% employer matched contributions. Existing staff often still have them but can get pushed off them during reorgs so I figure they will be completely gone in about 10 years.
yaseer 9y ago
A suitable analogy might be with the police. Both are employed by the state and face risks of daily violence in their jobs. Veterans are hero-worshipped by comparison. I actually feel the police deserve more respect. (At least the British police - can't say I have the same affection for the American police, at least based on the news reports over here...).

by gaius 9y ago

robin_reala 9y ago

But it’s your choice to undergo that. No-one in modern Britain is forced into military service.

gaius 9y ago
Well, it was your choice to work for the UK gov, why should you be entitled to a gold-plated final salary pension? Because it's - supposedly - a reasonable expectation for the opportunity cost of taking a different kind of job than you would find working for a corporation. Nowadays of course public sector salaries outstrip the private sector, so probably the pension should be scrapped.
- shubb 9y ago
  Public sector jobs pay maybe better than market in rural and economically dead areas of the UK. In the South East, they generally pay worse. If you don't believe me, go find your job in the civil service website and remember there is no salary negotiation. Senior civil servants make good bank though and have very nice revolving door opportunities, so it's a good career option financially if you expect to get there (i.e. elite education and very good at debates). The final salary pensions you mention have mostly been closed to new entrants - now you just buy into a fund and cash it for an annuity like anywhere else, with like 3-5% employer matched contributions. Existing staff often still have them but can get pushed off them during reorgs so I figure they will be completely gone in about 10 years.

yaseer 9y ago

A suitable analogy might be with the police. Both are employed by the state and face risks of daily violence in their jobs. Veterans are hero-worshipped by comparison. I actually feel the police deserve more respect. (At least the British police - can't say I have the same affection for the American police, at least based on the news reports over here...).