Wednesday 3 December 2014

PCS HQ: On sale for a song!


Image: google+

The news that the main civil service union PCS is in deep shit financial trouble is not new despite previous denials by amongst others Chris Baugh, the more than useless Assistant General Secretary. Earlier this year an attempt was made to allow Unite to simply takeover the union, something which for once led to the Serwotka/Socialist Party leadership being left with eggs on their faces.

With a large pensions deficit and a declining membership base the leadership have seemingly been forced into the position whereby the only way they can see their way out of the current mess (of mainly their own making it has to be said) is to sell off the Falcon Road Headquarters building which is owned by PCS outright and was purpose built by one of their predecessor unions, the CPSA.

Apparently staff working in HQ have been told that the union are "hoping" for £20 million as the sale price of which £7 million has to go to the pension fund.

Given the prime location of the building adjacent to Clapham Junction railway station and at the nexus of a large number of bus routes plus the fact it has a lot of parking space that figure sounds remarkably low.

There seems some ungainly urgency in this impending sale as April 2015 appears to be a key date involving the planning permission sought by the union without telling anyone.

A move to Croydon has been mooted by the Grandees.

Problem is that this is a major decision that has not been put to the membership who should have a say. The trouble with any deadline before May is that Conference will be presented with a "fait accompli".

The time has come for the PCS (who's National Executive Committee is currently meeting in err.. Falcon Road) to actually tell the members the situation the union is really in.

After all with PCS pushing everybody into paying dues by direct debit, they both deserve and have a right to know what is going on.

Enough of the prevarication already.

Open the Books!

That's what Trotsky would have demanded "comrades"!!

1 comment:

  1. There is a lot of empty office space in South London so it might be hard to hit that figure. Not sure as not an estate agent

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