Local Jobs for Local People?

It has been eroded letter by letter.

They appear to be coming here and swallowing Britain whole.

I wonder what happened to the "great" in Great Britain Nanna?

Like I said, ........... a complicated question. But I do see your point. Got me thinking actually of our own economy and I've come up with a brilliant idea to help it! LOL You'll have to wait for the discussion though!

I agree with you to a large extent. However, this is a wholesale import of foreign workers, hundreds of them, without considering whether there is a local option available. More widely, I think that this is simply the entree to a year of discontent and militancy brought about by the recession.

My health is a victim to outsourcing and I know first hand more about it than I wish Donna! Curiously, I suspect that Italian labour laws are tighter than our own.

I never said they weren't idiots, I will always believe the country is run by a few greedy people and a few of their greedy friends.. I can't say much good about our government.. I would like to be proud of our elected officials but I can't..

Well outsourcing was started by the Republicans. The same people who gave tax cuts to the rich thinking it would help them creat jobs. Well they did just not in the US .

I am always hearing about how the EU benefits Britain. But I see precious little evidence of it.

It is the law. That's true. But it the law always right? We are talking hundreds of jobs here, not just one or two.

We haven't voted to join the EU either. We voted to join a common market, not to lose our sovereignty. But that's what's happening.

I understand your anger and frustration. We here in the USA have been trying for ages to stop illegal aliens from coming in and taking our jobs away from us and stop companies from outsourcing jobs overseas. The difference in our situation and yours is that we've not voted to join union with the rest of the America continent, but I'm afraid it's coming.

My view is that if there are people qualified locally then they should be considered first. Thank you.

Bad Becky! Becky gets down on her knees (which you might have to help me back up)covers her head and takes deep breaths, patiently waits for her whipping for being so thoughtless...be gentle..

I have only just got up and you're off to bed Becky - very late if I may say so! LOL. I agree with you about the workers. Unfortunately if out new borderless empire of Europe that stretches from Ireland to the border with Russia, we are not supposed to think such thoughts! Grrrrr.

Yes, it is very insensitive. Something I heard today had me riled. Someone on the radio was claiming that we shouldn't complain about "foreigners taking our jobs" because, apparently, British people don't want them! Now, I don't know about everybody else but if someone offered me a decent job, I wouldn't refuse!

There's an up and downside to most things Pumpkin. In this case though the wholesale importation of foreign workers, hundreds of them is a slap in the face for British workers with the same skills. I accept entirely that the EU allows us to work in any member state, but in this case it is extremely insensitive.

Grrrrrrrrrrr!

I would to.

I was quite interested to hear that more Brits work elsewhere in the EU than foreigners do in the UK. That doesn't seem like the position to me. Of course if you include the Armed Forces it will run into the tens of thousands. There is no simple answer. I don't have a gripe about workers coming here, but I do think when entire labour forces are in the pot then greater thought needs to be given.

I am not a socialist Guy, but I am of the view that charity begins at home and such examples are simply corporate greed. We are all living though a recession caused by that!

I very much agree. This will sound very harsh, but whenever there's an overseas disaster our government is quick to donate millions and millions (which they must pull conveniently out of their posteriors) - and yet you'd be horrified to read of the state of our hospitals, schools and the living conditions of our indigenous people. There has been much in the news lately of poor women having miscarriages in dirty hospital toilets because the staff is too overworked and understaffed to find beds and proper care for them - and this morning's paper had stories of doctors using their own money to buy supplies, and hospitals being denied credit at local businesses because of unpaid bills! In one hospital, patients' families were actually asked to bring meals! It sounds laughable - we're NOT a third world country (are we?) - and as well as this, the schools are rotting, leaking and infested with mildew and vermin. Some have to close when the weather heats up, as there's no air conditioning and nobody can work in the stifling conditions. Yet, we fling charity with gay abandon - probably in order to impress. Obviously it's nice to help other countries who are suffering, but the state of health, education and public housing in this country is absolutely appalling - yet the government keep telling us there's no money. Riggggghhhhht ...

Well of course it's a free market Tamara, so anyone can work anywhere. But this can work against a country. We have always had a soft approach to immigration and now we are reaping the effects of those policies. XXX

Hi p1key, Too true, have you seen the news? now the British workers are marching and about time too and lets hope this goverment stand up and listen. Hugs. Tamara xxxx

Yes. I accept and understand that. However, this isn't a small group of workers, this is a major contract employing hundreds with apparently no real consideration about whether there are the skills locally to meet work on offer. I don't think that wildcat strikes are very helpful. There is a cynical part of me that thinks that this is a handy peg to hang wider discontent on, not just this project.

I agree abut the strikes and the wider discontent. Tonight's news report said that even the unions are trying to persuade the workers to go back to work. It also said that a reason for accepting the Italian tender was that they have skilled workers who could start work immediately while British contenders would have to go through a process of recruiting and training staff before the work could begin. It all had to depend on who responded to the invitation to tender. British companies really need to get better at this. There would probably have been a number of ways to do it - forming a consortium might have made it work. But now it looks like a fait accomplit. If there's a light at the end of the tunnel, it's probably that there will be more jobs for locals once the construction has been completed.

I'm not sure that it does make the citizens happy Bryony. But thank you anyway.

Well I will come out here and say that I am anti europe. What I mean is the surrendering of our sovereignty to Brussels. Had I been old enough I would have voted for Britain's inclusion in the "Common Market". I am all for free trade. However, we have now become beholden to a federalised union that dictates so many things in our lives. That is something that we didn't vote for and has become a millstone around our necks. This contract is an excellent example of that. As for Poles etc. They do show us up with their strong work ethics. I was also amused to see how many are returning home because this isn't the land of milk and honey that they thought that it would be.

That's true and I agree that in principle that is what should happen. However, this is a major contract which will see locals claiming benefits whilst foreign workers take their jobs. It will be interesting to see the outcome.

The Governent has no option Bhansub. Britain is part of the European Union and all big contracts have to be offered to all member states.

That annoys me too, especially as quite often they move manufacture to countries that have a very casual approach to employment law.

Apparently it is not cheaper to hire Italians. I agree with yo about voting out our leaders, but the EU is so ingrained into our system now that leaving just isn't an option. More's the pity.