The BBC strikes

It is said that the recent strike at the BBC by the National Union of Journalists, over proposed changes to the pension scheme, will be the first of many. I hope not, because like many people I am reliant on the BBC and I get very bad tempered when it is not available.

I suppose these people are right to strike if they feel short changed by the management, but in these straightened times they should not expect to suffer less than millions of private sector workers. Companies can no longer afford final salary pension schemes, and if the private sector can’t afford them we shouldn’t give them to the public sector.

The problem the strikers have, I think, is with public perception. Whilst our firemen are lazy and overpaid, and most of their work has nothing to do with putting out fires, there is a certain public sympathy with people who sometimes put their lives at risk.

By contrast no one believes BBC employees are under-remunerated, irrespective of whether they are or aren’t..

These days there are private sector alternatives, such as Sky and Al Jazeera. The BBC will lose market share because of the strikes, but since there is no profit motive the workers won’t notice.

The customers will.