Ruthless.

    

     

                                                   Image courtesy of BBC.

           So P&O ferries have just paid off 800 workers without a hint of discussion. Just a statement telling all ferries to stay in port waiting an announcement. The announcement came shortly after that via a zoom message, no matter how it was phrased it came down to "your fired". Obviously this was not a sudden decision, for as the dismissal statement was "zoomed", the replacement foreign workers were already waiting at the dockside to take over the ferries. So there was a process of recruiting vetting and employing the replacement cheaper workers to replace the 800 fired. All done surreptitiously, behind closed doors with no regard to the disaster this would mean for so many families. Homes pushed into poverty, kids having to miss out on all manner of things, anxiety and stress for the households concerned.
         No matter what you might think, this is the true face of capitalism, first and foremost it must be profit, and to hell with the workforce. In 2019 P&O ferries were bought by DP World, a Dubai company, during 2020 they claimed almost £15 million in government grants, our money, and in 2020, paid out £270 million to shareholders. Now in 2022 they clam that they are losing money and need to pay off their staff and employ cheaper labour from abroad. If that is not exploiting workers who for whatever reason will work for less, then what is. What does that statement make of Bumbling Boris's statement about the UK being a high salary, high skilled economy.
        There should be no shock and horror at this decision, this economic system of capitalism will always put profit before people, and will always be as ruthless as they can get away with in their drive for ever increasing profit. Attempting to make capitalism a more humane system is like trying to make an omelette without breaking the egg. If you want justice and fairness in the workplace, then the workers have to take control of that workplace, there is no alternative. Yes, the present system may give you sticking plaster or a paracetamol to make you feel better, but it will not cure the problem of workers exploitation. 

Visit ann arky's home at https://spiritofrevolt.info
 

Shafted.

 

         Philip Green has been in the news recently for his usual talent of sucking companies dry, throwing their millions at his wife's account, of course all tax free, as she lives in Monaco, but Philip is not alone in this screwing the British tax payer. As a mater of fact, it is quite common practice among our large and wealthy companies. During the year 2017 the number of very large and rich companies that made a profit, but contributed nil to the UK tax pot is a list of very well known names. Though these figures are from 3 years ago, they are still playing the same game of shafting the public to enrich the company and its shareholders. What is even more disgusting, is that some of these corporate giants, despite making a profit, were handed a tax credit of millions. Which means that instead of them contributing to the wealth of the country, we the tax payers helped them pay their CEO and shareholders larger payments.

 

          Almost one in five of Britain's biggest companies paid not a penny of corporation tax in the UK last year, it can be revealed. The Mail on Sunday has managed to obtain the details of the tax paid by 69 of the FTSE 100 group of largest companies on the stock market – many of which do not publish these figures in their annual reports. The remaining 31 refused or failed to respond to repeated requests to disclose their tax payments.
       Where details could be obtained, 13 firms – equivalent to one in five of the 69 that came clean – either paid no corporation tax in Britain or received a tax credit from HM Revenue & Customs. The list includes household names such as BP, Royal Mail and British Gas owner Centrica. Usually firms pay corporation tax of 19 per cent of their total profits.
       BP made £5.6 billion in profit last year – yet still received tax credits worth £134million. That meant it was a net receiver of tax money in the UK, rather than contributing to the cost of running the country where its shares are listed.
       Some firms are even paying their chief executives more than they pay in tax. Royal Mail boss Rico Back stands to earn £1.4million this year on top of a £5.8million 'golden hello' for joining the company. This payment might appear unremarkable given that the company, which was privatised in 2013, made £39million profit in the UK last year and £212million globally. But it can now be revealed Royal Mail's UK profit was then increased rather than reduced by tax, thanks to a huge tax credit of £93million - the second largest in our survey - of which £78million was attributed to a pension 'accounting adjustment with no cash benefit', according to the company.
       The findings will raise concerns big businesses are failing to pay their fair share towards schools, hospitals and UK infrastructure. None of the companies assessed by The Mail on Sunday is accused of acting illegally, but most have used UK tax laws to reduce their payments from the amount they might have been expected to pay.

        Of course I'm not drawing attention to this in the hope that our corporate friendly lords and masters in The Westminster Houses of Hypocrisy and Corruption, will introduce a set of fairer laws to stop this. There isn't a hope in hell of that, since most of them are shareholders and on very friendly terms with the tax "evaders". No, I'm hoping that these facts might raise the anger level of the general public enough to bring this whole stinking greedfest of the parasites to an end. Then we can start to reconstruct society in a fairer and just manner that sees to the needs of all our people. We don't need them, but to continue to keep their snouts in the public trough, they need us to be submissive and look the other way. Will we comply?  

Visit ann arky's home at https://radicalglasgow.me.uk