The following has been supplied by the TUC:
The government's policy chief has revealed the government's determination to instil a real 'fear' of job losses in public sector workers. The comments from Oliver Letwin, architect of the coalition's plans to reform public services, came as new research highlights the deadly consequences of job insecurity. Letwin told a meeting at the offices of leading consultancy firm KPMG: 'You can't have room for innovation and the pressure for excellence without having some real discipline and some fear on the part of the providers that things may go wrong if they don't live up to the aims that society as a whole is demanding of them.' He added: 'Some will not survive. It is an inevitable and intended consequence of what we are talking about.' Mark Serwotka, general secretary the civil service union PCS, described the minister's comments as 'nonsense.' He said: 'Public sector workers are already working in fear - fear of cuts to their job, pension, living standards and of privatisation. Far from improving productivity, the cuts are creating chaos in vital public services.' Research on the impact of job insecurity, published in the August 2011 edition of the journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine, concluded 'perceived job insecurity can lead to adverse health effects in both permanent and temporary employees. Policies should aim to improve work-related well-being by reducing job insecurity. Efforts towards 'flexicurity' are important, but it is equally important to remember that a significant proportion of employees with a permanent contract experience job insecurity.'
