This is for police officers only please.
I need some help with a quick straw poll. I appreciate that this will not give me a very broad picture but it will significantly help with something I have planned. There are two questions. I have to admit I’m not a great fan of yes/no/not sure polls. I normally have much more to say! Please do take part.
Thanks
Post script added 3.5.12
Thank you everyone for taking part in this little exercise. Some Fed folk got a little upset about the wording and pointed out we are working toward industrial rights. I accept this and agree. Strike action is the last resort and something that would be very difficult for us to obtain. See my Tools down, All out blog. The purpose was to gain a very quick response to the question. There were 638 votes cast and the greater number were on the first question. The second was clearly police officer specific and a number of people following me who are not police officers, answered question 1 only to find they couldn’t answer question 2.
I’m not naive enough to think this is a definitive answer. There will be votes in there by people who are maybe not police officers at all. I do think though with my following that the bulk of voters will have been and whilst we cannot read them as wholly accurate they do give us food for thought. There were a few things that came from it for me in general terms.
Overall the right to strike result was a resounding YES with 76% voting that way. 17% said NO and the remainder were unsure. This to me shows the strength of feeling and anger amongst officers is very high.
The second question is much different. There is a strong body of 46% who state they would walk out. That said the majority, just, are in the NO and NOT SURE camp. The latter could obviously swing either way. However I found this somewhat reassuring and indicative of the very nature of a police officers dedication. The right to industrial rights and striking is emotive but I do think many officers, who care about people, care about their communities and care about their professional responsibilities to society would find it very hard and very uncomfortable to abandon the public.
Only time will tell but feelings and viewpoints may change as this situation continues to spiral down. We can only be treated this way for so long before we will feel that our hand is being forced.
Thank you once again for your support.
TCS
Sorry, not a Police officer so can’t apply Q2
I believe we garner greater public support if we [police] have a contract with them that we cannot strike and that this does not feature as part of our arsenal. Achieving and worse still exercising a right to strike will play into the hands of those that seek to identify police with commerce and apply business rules to our pay and conditions.
I don’t want the right to strike. If Winsor wants to be able to make me redundant and effectively take away my negotiating rights over pay and conditions I damn well want proper industrial rights.
#AntiWinsorNetwork
@scillysergeant, have you not noticed they are doing that anyway hence why we need not just want industrial rights?
Interesting to hear you on the radio. Take care.
Take care. Interesting to hear you on the radio.
It was an honour to be asked. Thanks.
Thank you all for the comments. I don’t see how, if we wish to maintain public support, that gaining industrial rights that could include strike options will ever bring us closer to them.
We get enough criticism now when through low numbers we don’t attend promptly to some incidents. Where would that criticism be if someone was in the process of being burgled and we were on strike?
“It’s ok. Don’t worry. I support your fight. Don’t worry about my jewellery and the car they nicked off the drive.”
The police are the public and the public are the police. We need to work hard to get the public to listen to our concerns and work with them to bring that message home to the government.
I would also recommend you look a the Tools Down, All Out blog
Answering your first question, I answered No, just because I think generally Police shouldn’t have the right to strike. I think it would be devastating for society if we did have. However, the government have backed us into a corner and we have no other choice other than to seek industrial rights so whilst I think we shouldn’t have the right to strike, I’m supporting any call for us to get full industrial rights as its our only option.