Mineasapint,
I really cannot believe anyone out there seriously believes that SERCO would have anything to do with NATS.
I mean look at the state the company is in.......SERCO would be insane to pump large amounts of cash into the company for no gauranteed return. Most of the cost savings that were easily done have already been done, there is nothing for them to gain from investing in crippled company.
I am amazed people are still believeing that being taken over by SERCO is a threat or possibility....this really is a false scare argument.
As ATCOs we have an exceptionally strong bargaining position at the moment.....the company cannot afford to have us go out on strike, and they know it.
As has been mentioned in other threads today there seems to be a fair amount of money rolling around NATS coffers.......so why shouldn't we claim a fair and reasonable reward?
The excuses TAG mentioned are nothing to do with us......we did not cause or affect any of them, why the hell should we pay for them...........I mean when traffic was rising at 8-10% did we hear management say "Things are going well, how about an 8% pay rise this year?"
We didn't profit from good times, why should we suffer from bad times?
To follow your(their) analagy through should train drivers on GNER or WAGN have their pay affected due to the Potters Bar disaster?
How about a pay cut for Air China pilots after the 767 crash in Korea?
US controllers have just had a pay rise (much larger than our paltry offer) and I would suggest that the US was harder hit by 911 than anyone.
We can't continue to carry the can for other people's problems.......we are under paid, undervalued, treated like utter s**t, overworked, blah blah blah........its talked about all the time.
I fully support the BEC on this matter, I am delighted they have finally taken a stand on an important matter.....pay is not just for the short term, for many of us it is the over-riding issue for our next 30 working years.
I am always amazed at us NATS ATCOs at how we seem to have incredibly low aspirations, and devalue ourselves......WHY ????