I Just Don't Understand ..........

[Evans Electric]

..........how we can continue in this manner.  

Whats he waffling about now ? you ask.

A large GKN plant near me closes .  It did Cold Extrusion Presswork , making car parts , cold presswork , biggest press 1600 Ton .   Been functioning for at least 60 years , all shipped off to India.  

  Whats happening to the site  ?   

What always happens .......  a Sainburys is to be built !!   So nothing for the skilled toolmakers , die sinkers etc  some part time jobs .mostly for women ....all unskilled .

Question is :-         Where are people supposed to earn the money to keep spending in these supermarkets  ?   Theres a Lidal opposite , a giant ASDA  2 miles away and a giant Tesco 3 miles away .

A vision of whole populations on benefit ...........trotting out once a week to spend their food vouchers in the local supermarket.

What went wrong ?

 

[OnOff]

The brother in law has a number of tractors which he uses on his smallholding. Mainly old Massey Ferguson things from the 50's onward. Brilliant things, not overly fussy about fuel and only two main bolt sizes throughout which makes servicing easy. And the best bit is he can still get most if not all the parts from pistons to panels.

..............the parts now come from India where the tractors are still made to the original designs again because "we" sold them all the presses etc.

 

[Evans Electric]

Yes you couldn't make it up could you ?  

There are places in Asia making things like , Royal Enfield Motor bikes, Hercules Bicycles  and Morris Oxfords. 

I just feel that its all being pulled out from under our feet .................or is  it because I only know a background of manufacturing , steel works, metal bashing .......where everyone I left school with went to companies like  Bill Switchgear ,  MEM,  George Ellison Switchgear, IMI,  General Electric Company , car plants , nut & bolt makers, vehicle transmission makers ,  drop forgers,  Jewellery Quarter  , commercial vehicle builders,  railway rolling stock builders , steel works and mining .

Deiu , it sounds like a period TV drama now  FFS

 

[ProDave]

We are a nation of shopkeepers.

Like you I can't figure out how we ALL can be employed in the service industry.  We can't ALL be employed selling stuff, someone has to actually make something to make some money.

And yes I despair about higher education and debt.

All I can say is I'm glad I left school 34 years ago and went straight to an apprenticeship. I really could not see that happening if I left school today. 

Here's another of lifes mysteries.  When I started out, banking was very different. No internet or telephone banking.  All your banking was done in your branch.  If you wanted to set up a standing order (no direct debits then) you went to your branch and instructed the teller. Likewise to pay bills, pay in or cash cheques.  If you had a query on your account (when the monthly statement arrived by post) you telephoned your branch and they dealt with it.

NOW there still seems to be the same number of staff in the bank branch, but these days if you have a problem, you call a CALL CENTRE not your branch.

So we have "manufactured" thousands of call centre jobs that didn't exist before, even when banking was arguably more labour intensive.  How can that be "progress"?

 

[Evans Electric]

Bit like Phart Pee then  :innocent     That sums up the world of work these days..................6 men with clipboards watching 1 man dig a hole !!!

 

[Marvo]

Presume the staff who used to work there now work in Tescos  :slap

They could probably also replace the Tescos employees with virtual staff as soon as they have an animation available with enough acne and piercings. Where's it going to end?

 

[ProDave]

A mate of mine - Hiss missus is a Barclays Main Branch manager (She cant wait for retirement - but i digress :slap )

Apparently they are trialling (up north) virtual banks

You go in - Its empty - Just a touch screen and hole in the wall (lots of em) - the touch screen is like face time - but with an animated computer person talking to you - One replacing every staff member

Presume the staff who used to work there now work in Tescos :slap

They all work in a call centre in front of a webcam.

 

[OnOff]

I frequently go into W H Smiths at London Bridge Station, pick up a copy of The Times and go to one the unmanned tills (you can g'tee they'll all be unmanned).  Now then there are two self service tills with a W H Smith employee STANDING NEXT TO THEM! So I stand at the main till and he/she standing next to the self service ones will say "If you would like to use the self service till Sir?". I say "No thanks, don't like them!". I put the paper back and go to the little shop on the high walk next to Richer Sounds. I've tried having the "This takes longer / it's doing you out of a job" conversation with them to no avail! "Have you got your own bag / incorrect item in bagging area / would you like one of our special offers / select one of 50 payment methods" - can't be doing with all that. I just want to give somebody a £1 coin and get on my train which should take about 30s or less!

Small victories.

 

[Evans Electric]

I hereby rename  you ................Victor :Salute

 

[OnOff]

I hereby rename  you ................Victor :Salute

I see Clarkson is thinking of becoming an MP. Not a fan of Top Gear anymore (the three of them have admitted it's now too scripted etc) but at least he speaks his mind. I mean be honest could he or UKIP do any worse? This current crop are not only selling off the family silver they're giving cash handouts overseas then preaching austerity here! Something is VERY wrong! As a Syrian dissident just said "These are Churchill's grandchildren". Must be turning in his grave. And Powell's "river's" speech rings true almost daily in the UK yet you daren't bring it up.

 

[batty]

Things are getting desperate they are even selling of royal mail/post office. Can't really see what right any government has doing this.

 

[Evans Electric]

There are strange things that happen in this country .    The other day in my area one of the big colleges with three campuses announced they would not accept any student wearing a face mask  ( Niqab)  on security grounds .    Two days later they have bowed to pressure and will allow it .

I know they are strict on security there as I went there to do the 17th jobby at night school .....walked in carrying the ID card they issued and was pulled over by the very bouncer -like security blokes .     " You must wear it round your neck " I was told . 

 

[Steve3948]

..........how we can continue in this manner.

Whats he waffling about now ? you ask.

A large GKN plant near me closes . It did Cold Extrusion Presswork , making car parts , cold presswork , biggest press 1600 Ton . Been functioning for at least 60 years , all shipped off to India.

Whats happening to the site ?

What always happens ....... a Sainburys is to be built !! So nothing for the skilled toolmakers , die sinkers etc some part time jobs .mostly for women ....all unskilled .

Question is :- Where are people supposed to earn the money to keep spending in these supermarkets ? Theres a Lidal opposite , a giant ASDA 2 miles away and a giant Tesco 3 miles away .

A vision of whole populations on benefit ...........trotting out once a week to spend their food vouchers in the local supermarket.

What went wrong ?

I worked there 40 years ago as an apprentice installing fire detection cables all over the plant.

They were making crank shafts in one building, big block of red hot steel, press comes down, bang and 1 crank shaft formed, press goes up and guy reaches in with big tongs and pulls red hot waste out and throws it behind him, very scary looking stuff. Heard story's of guys getting hit with the waste and taking a limb straight off.

The cranks were then heated again and went through a series of oil dips, and that's where I nearly met our maker, as the apprentice I was up the ladder near to one of the oil dips, the electrician was footing the ladder, I pulled the cable and the ladder twisted round, I started to go so reached for the tray and was left hanging on the tray right over the oil dip, it was only for seconds but seemed like ages, until the ladder was put back into position.

I was not happy had a massive row with the electrician who was busy yapping instead of holding the ladder, I then phoned company and ask to be put with someone else.

That was the end of my time at GKN.

I thought it had gone years ago to be honest, it was in Bromsgrove then I recall.

 

[OnOff]

So So True

This is very interesting. Bear in mind it's Trevor Phillips speech. I think it shocked a few people when they saw who was speaking:

http://www.humanities.manchester.ac.uk/socialchange/research/social-change/summer-workshops/documents/sleepwalking.pdf

Beats me that all these sell off's are allowed; black cabs come back 6 months later under Chinese management, the French build reactors here only after assurances of subsidies for the next umpteen years, MG? That should have been "fixed" in house and encouragement given to buy British (don't the French do similar?). Isn't the new chief at the Bank of England Canadian?

We are losing our identity and segreagation is encouraged by policy rater than integration being promoted. Society fragments and more pounds in the pockets go out of the country IMHO.

Must be a very few at the very top getting very rich out of all this!

 

[ProDave]

Slightly off topic, but did any of you watch Peaky Blinders?

I wonder if it's an accurate portrayal of life in Birmingham in 1919?

 

[apprentice87]

I go into the bank in the freezing cold weather with my motorbike stuff on. They always refuse to serve me... They can clearly see that i have not got a 12 Bore or the like with me, but they refuse to serve me unless i take off my two pairs of gloves, helmet balaclaver and wind cheater thingy, Despite the fact that it is most laborious to put all this junk back on and they know perfectly well who i am, they refuse.

Now then, when i point out that if i was a muslim and dressed as a welder, they would not DARE to tell me to remove things, they do not know what to say. On occasion thay have just said "We know, but it is the rules and we would get the sack" I do not blame the staff person concerned but it is wrong.....

At one time round here, they went through a very short phase of refusing to switch on petrol pumps at the garage unless you took all your helmet off. Best plan then was to just dump the pump hose and handle on the ground, thus making them come all the way out to replace it....

They soon stopped that lark!!

john....

 

[Evans Electric]

Slightly off topic, but did any of you watch Peaky Blinders?

I wonder if it's an accurate portrayal of life in Birmingham in 1919?

I didn't watch it TBH  But I heard that the accents , as usual, were way off .    For a Brummie accent think Ozzie Osbourne.   Wern't most of the gangs Irish ?     All I know is that they did exist ,  parents would threaten kids with " If you don't behave the Peaky Blinders will come for you "    And yes they had razorblades in the peaks of their caps.

I worked there 40 years ago as an apprentice installing fire detection cables all over the plant.

They were making crank shafts in one building, big block of red hot steel, press comes down, bang and 1 crank shaft formed, press goes up and guy reaches in with big tongs and pulls red hot waste out and throws it behind him, very scary looking stuff. Heard story's of guys getting hit with the waste and taking a limb straight off.

The cranks were then heated again and went through a series of oil dips, and that's where I nearly met our maker, as the apprentice I was up the ladder near to one of the oil dips, the electrician was footing the ladder, I pulled the cable and the ladder twisted round, I started to go so reached for the tray and was left hanging on the tray right over the oil dip, it was only for seconds but seemed like ages, until the ladder was put back into position.

I was not happy had a massive row with the electrician who was busy yapping instead of holding the ladder, I then phoned company and ask to be put with someone else.

That was the end of my time at GKN.

I thought it had gone years ago to be honest, it was in Bromsgrove then I recall.

Steve  that was the other part of the company ...the drop stamping   which moved from Witton in B,ham to where you went I believe.    The Cold Extrusion part moved from Witton to Hamstead in B,ham and thats the one thats now gone to India.  

Think of the steel tubular shell that forms a starter motor or generator for a car ....they pressed those out cold in one operation ...same with telescopic forks for motorbikes , when we still made them here.

I do however , also remember the drop forge as a scarey place to be .   

 

[kerching]

There are strange things that happen in this country .    The other day in my area one of the big colleges with three campuses announced they would not accept any student wearing a face mask  ( Niqab)  on security grounds .    Two days later they have bowed to pressure and will allow it .

I know they are strict on security there as I went there to do the 17th jobby at night school .....walked in carrying the ID card they issued and was pulled over by the very bouncer -like security blokes .     " You must wear it round your neck " I was told . 

Right then......

a couple of years ago i was totally micturated off with this faceveil thing, so i went into my Bank ( who i disliked anyway) wearing a balaclava. I was told to remove it. I refused on medical grounds. When asked whatbthe medical reason was i informed that that " i was sick of the DISCRIMINATION AGAINST THE WHITE BORN AND BRED ENGLISH MINORITY...".i suggested they serve me or i would close the account. 

They refused, the Manager crawled out from beneath his stone and told me i could not close my account.......so I did!

i will not name the bank concerned BUT it rhymed with Marclays

i am now with Santander, all free .all hole in wall. Balaclava is not an issue

 

[apprentice87]

I had an argument many years ago in a bank. I said "right, close the account and give me MY money" The manager came along, and, trying to be obstructive, told me that i could not and that to close the account i would have to send in a letter... You reckon eh!!!!

I asked how much was in the account, [there were two accounts actually] and i drew out all but one penny from each account. Oh yes, i dragged this out for at least 25 years!!!! must have cost them thousands in admin!!!!! Just to keep the accounts alive, every now and again i would pay in a few quid and then draw it out again, ha ha, that taught them!!!

john