Those of you who have followed our story of ' Diggin' for Dignity ' through the pages of the Guardian, or Pikey's site, are in line for a cracker this time.
I would say 'this could be a Council near YOU' but, unfortunately, it is a Council near where my family stays.
The Cast.
An ordinary worker with 35 years on the clock for the Council.
A corrupt Headmaster charged with embezzlement.
A dodgy Council Official.
The Headmaster.
Last year the Council allowed this 'Heidie' to retire 5 years early - on full pension - from his £70K job on the day he first appeared to face charges for embezzlement no less.
The Crown office has now decided it is not in the public interest to proceed with the charges.
This same ex-President of the Headmasters association was also accused of demanding money from the owner of an ice-cream van which sold junk food to the schoolkids.
How dreadfully lucky is that Headmaster, you may say.
Maybe he is just a very good golfer or bowler or something like that.
The Worker.
The worker, known here as 'The Doc', has just retired after nearly 35 years with the Council and an unblemished record.
A party of nearly 300 attended a 'do' for this stalwart of the community, attesting to his popularity and including many important people in a private capacity.
But, what did the Council do for this model worker?
Did he receive 'The Quaich' which the Council's own Strategic Management Committee had approved in such a case?
Did he receive a token gift-voucher as a gesture of appreciation for his many years of service?
Did he receive a Council tie?
Did he even receive a letter of appreciation for all those years of toil?.
Did he fuck.
Why should our hero be treated this way?
He had applied for his enhanced retirement package and the Council quibbled on the grounds of cost. Sure, break the largest Council in Britain, it would. No matter.
He heard about this in a novel way.
The dodgy Council Official had approached our hero in a supermarket and told him he 'could whistle for it'.
Our loyal worker was very embarrassed to hear his retirement package spelt out in front of a supermarket queue, as you may imagine.
The fact that only an appeal through the local SNP MSP produced a result for him was some recompense, but it seems our dodgy Council Official never forgot that he had been thwarted.
The dodgy Council Official.
This one is a real champion. A nasty piece of work.
It seems he had been asked by the Council to attend, in an OFFICIAL capacity, our friend's going away party but never bothered to turn up.
Is it possible he had a senior moment?
Don't think so. He is known as a sharp character. Very sharp.
And, like our headmaster friend, is also known for demanding money - in his case for changing the evaluations of employees in the Single Status Cock-up.
Who knows if this will ever come to Court, but you can be sure of this - he will certainly be allowed to retire on a full pension and the old boys network will have a laugh about it in the Golf Club.
The moral of the story seems to be that, if you get caught with your hand in the till, you will be well looked after. Work your whole life in an honest manner and you will get shat upon from a great height.
Incidentally, it is not just 'hands in the till' that get covered-up here - but, that one's for later.
Let me just leave you with a picture of abject sorrow and humiliation.
A man, out of overalls for the first time in 35 years, suited and booted, standing with his family and waiting for the presentation that his lifetime's work deserved.
The one he had waited for all that time.
The presentation that never came.
(Thanks to the Scottish Sunday Mail, 10/06/07, for the story of the corrupt Headmaster)
*
Amendment 14th June 07
I have recently been informed that the aforementioned dodgy Council Official wasn't actually 'demanding' money, as such, for changing employee evaluations.
In fact, he was 'just' arranging for favoured employees to receive a better grading.
What causes an employee to be favoured was not specified.
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17 comments:
May I be the first to recommend that Marwick is nominated as RAT OF THE YEAR.
I am truly disgusted.
I did not mention a name in that story.
This was purely a story about what may happen in your average Regional Council.
Still, I think that is a reasonable nomination.
Send it to Private Eye as a matter of urgency.
If you want the email address, let me know.
'They' simply can't be allowed to get away with it.
Feels like we've gone 180 degrees from the days of insane unionised power, and workers rights.
Damn. I think there'll be plenty more where that came from.
Well said,Richard.
From Scottish Sunday Mail story to Private Eye, Richard.
Are such things possible?
Why the problem? Here in Spain during the last regional elections there were outstanding people involved in urbanisation and building embezzlement, plenty of them, do you know what happened to them?
They were re-elected.
The human being is the same everywhere. There are good and bad people everywhere.
The more money they have the more adulation they receive.
I wonder when the day will come that hypocrisy be eradicated from our societies.
Typical small-town stitchup. I was once preparing to sue a dodgy seaside builder for exorbitant bills I hadn't contracted for, but desisted when I discovered that he was chairman of the local golf club and a magistrate.....
Exactly right, Anticant.
Except this is the biggest Region in Britain, I believe.
And they do act like it is a personal fiefdom.
Depressing story for 'the Doc'. I hope he receives some help and is able to stick it to these pudknockers (who sound more like pathetic mafioso street bosses then 'pillars of the community'), if it is help that he desires.
I also hope the Doc realizes it is a testament to his character that these 'wastes of skin' did not show for his party.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
The honorable Councilor asks,
"What da ya want for nothing? ... a rubber biscuit? "
And the rest of us respond,
"Sure why not, and for you Councilor... what we here in Virginia call
'an old fashioned blanket party'."
Hello Ranger : I guess you enjoy Henrik Ibsen.
The "Pillars of Society" theme from you seemed just about right to revisit a damned goof author.
Thanks for that jolt.
HERE In southern Minnesota in the land of the cow-pats & un-mahometan hog-farms, some forty-five years since an old-time elected Mankato city council & administration was in a lather of 'gridlock'. They was all old men & heirs of two-three generations of family-hatreds & vendetta, all going back to the 1850s' days of the land-grab from off of the Indians.
SO What did they do, these crapulous and church-going, largely german-american, old men?
WELL, Hell & Jesus Christ boiling & roasting away IN that Hell -- you guessed it! The God-damned deluded OLD sonsofbitches brought in -- you guessed it! -- a trained city-manager & gangs & relays of professional -- you guessed it! -- liberals:
"HI! [sticks out manicured but still vulgarly stubby-fingered hand] I am a trained liberal & have loads of credentials -- glad you met me! Now, then [you guessed it! -- BW]...where's the CASH?"
IN Forty-some years, the ancient city-centre has been wrecked ('urban renewal'), there is no public transit (the 1994 federally-bought 'buses all sit disused as there is -- you guessed it! -- no political will to try financing on-going operations with an annual local vehicle-plate), and the 'Homeland Neurosis' er, Security'-funded police of several jurisdictions hereabouts among the farm-turds all gang & riot in 'multi-jurisdictional' SWAT-teams, and they shoot down for preference bewildered citizenry instead of -- you guessed it! -- just running them in. Police detest the ever-increasing paperwork-blizzard & naturally prefer summary method....
THIS Here is just the tip of the ice-berg:
http://bodwyn.wordpress.com/2007/05/06/biting-dogs-packing-grannies-judicial-review/#more-214
IN The long view, then, the late-modern age produced the nation-state and state-liberalism. The trinket of state-power invited subsidised phantasies of universal betterment, in return for which the political class -- a moiety of psychological- & moral-cripples -- would use 'power' to work out their various personal garks & hoos & jumpy-bug megrims -- in the latest phase mostly on various foreign-looking religions abroad!
THIS Marwick cunt you mention, G W Bush, all alike are -- ta, da! -- state-liberallists. And, w/Mr Brown /et al/, ALL are God-damned.
[atheist & agnostical readers, /NB/ -- the last is intended as metaphor only -- BW]
Thankz for the thoughts Emmet.
I am sure that as soon as I get a translater I will agree with you.
But, you are right, those that ride roughshod over the ordinary guy are no less bad than Wolfie or BushyBaby or Bambi.
Although I miss a few of the details, due to my non-Britishness (I don't know about the Single Status Cock-up, and neither am I familiar with The Quaich), the story in itself seems depressingly universal: big thieves get a sympathy pat and a payrise, little people get sod all.
I am writhing in woundedness over the thought of the man waiting for his presentation in vain. Oh dear.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quaich
Sorry that I didn't explain, guys.
In the context a Quaich is a presentation Cup which would be engraved with The Doc's details and would take pride of place in the house.
Very often they are made of glass and are a prized item.
Single status cock-up?.
Let me think about how to explain that one. Very interesting.
Still, nice to see you here Anna MR and hope you pop back in again.
you have just got the tip of the iceberg with this place of work.
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