...erm, i may have drifted off of the point a little. I don't think things are so bad? there is always something to moan about, what i'm saying is that things are good for us, dwell on the positives. Moves by management to cut staff numbers are suicidal due to the nature of the beast, ie one minute ten blokes on a line drinking their 25th cup of tea trimming toenails with their leathermans, the next minute 3 gone on a AOG, two sickies, 3 down route and two running around like lunatics with lifejackets and such! we ARE needed, the thing is not to overstretch ourselves, we must always hang back just that little bit, do too much and its expected in the future. I'm not saying be a slacker, just don't do heroics and don't over-gobble on the o/t. Let demand out-weigh supply... am i making sense?....
Oh and about people in shiny motors, I know who bloke who lives in a very modest house and earns little, however he drives a very shiny audi because in his line of work the status thing is v. important, see him in the street and you would assume he wipes his ars@ on fifties, the truth is far from it. Any fool can get finance.