NewsMumOnline is back - bringing the bits of the news that I have heard about #NewsMumOnline

Once upon a time when I had a blogging mojo I used to regularly write #newsMumOnline. I have the biggest pile of newspapers to have ever seen in your life, as I still buy them, still intending to do it. Then I don't throw them away, as I haven't even had chance to read them let alone blog. I HAVE to throw them away or the husband will disown me. Really he would just like to disown the papers. Sometimes some of them find their way to the recycling before I notice. Anyhow, moving swiftly on.

Two very topical things today:

Firstly, Oyster Cards daily rate has now been capped, which benefits part-timers. Now if you are not a Londoner, or not a part-timer, you may think "so what" but I heard this news with a great deal of interest. My employer made me part-time whilst I was on maternity leave. I know I know! So when I returned to work, 3 days a week, I discovered that daily travel is WAY more expensive than a 1/7 of a one week travelcard (which you can't justify when you are only working 3 days). Anyhow Boris (in his infinite wisdom - oh how I hate to give the buffoon any credit) has realised how many people have irregular working patterns and this can now mean people save as much as 5 pounds a day. Ironically, I found a creative way myself, in 2011, of saving 5 pounds a day. I went to the station to enquire about prices before going back to work, and discovered that a peak travelcard was silly money (and it was my only option being that I started at 08:30 (yes I used to drop Aaron off at 7 a.m.), so my solution at the time was to get a return to Liverpool Street instead of a travelcard. Anyway, I am glad that so many Londoners will benefit from this change. Unfortunately I think full-timers will still see the normal annual price rises!

But the cheapest day travelcard will cost £12 - a 67% increase.
Overall, average bus and Underground fares will increase by 2.5%.
Critics pointed out that for full-time commuters it will be the seventh fare hike in a row. SOURCE: bbc.co.uk

So, on the face of it, I think it is great, having myself been a part-timer for 2 years, but given the quote above, is this just Boris spin? Putting a positive take on more fare hikes? After all, apparently savings are no longer to be made by travelling after 09:30 and most people love those savings, especially Mums on maternity leave who don't need to go to work, but do love to spend the day out and about in London.

What do you think?

Secondly, have you heard that jobless migrants will no longer be able to claim benefits? This is the result of a landmark case that may bring much needed changes that need to be made, so that perfectly reasonable people can stop being cross and heading over to UKIP, when really they are frustrated, and not normally extreme in their views. If you have reasons why it is NOT a good thing, let me know in the comments. I know benefit tourism is a real thing, so please don't tell me that the Daily Mail exaggerates it, as I have seen it in reality, even in the Republic of Ireland.

Thirdly, 5 banks have been fined due to their manipulation of exchange rates.

HSBC, Royal Bank of Scotland, Swiss bank UBS and US banks JP Morgan Chase and Citibank have all been fined.
A separate probe into Barclays is continuing. SOURCE: bbc.co.uk

So it seems the big banks are destined to remain in the headlines, as they have done since this recession began Autumn 2008.

Four, apparently unemployment is down, employment is up and even earnings have finally seen an increase despite the pay freezes that have plagued employment since the recession began. What I noticed in this article is the increase in the number of self-employed people year on year:

Around 14.7% of workers, or 4.5 million, are self-employed, down by 88,000 on the quarter but up by 279,000 on a year ago... SOURCE: bbc.co.uk

Finally some much awaited HR NEWS, regular readers will know I used to be a HR Manager, and not only that, I was made redundant. For that reason I have been watching the Woolworths' Case closely. You may have seen the store disappear from the high street quite a few years ago, you may even have grabbed some bargains in their closing down sales - I did. But did you know, the case for the employees who were in smaller stores (less than 20 employees) is still ongoing? The bigger branches saw their staff receive a large payout years ago, but for the smaller stores, the legal wranglings go on. Thankfully a date of 20th November 2014 has been set for the European hearing, so this decision will be tested so that everyone knows where they stand. 

Shopworker trade union leader John Hannett has welcomed the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) announcement that they will hear the Woolworths and Ethel Austin case on Thursday 20 November 2014.
‘Having won this case at an Employment Appeal Tribunal, we were stunned when the Government appealed the decision, because they had failed to attend the hearing. We hope that the CJEU will ensure that justice can be done by former Woolworths and Ethel Austin workers.’ SOURCE: USDAW

Personally I think it is disgusting that the Government are allowed to fail to attend a hearing, and then appeal. Law should be based on common-sense. You didn't defend the case, therefore you cannot appeal. You so know it would work THAT way round with regards to an individual, but seems that those who make the rules can break the rules *sigh*. Anyway, this will be a landmark case so fingers crossed!

Bye for now, Liska x

P.S. if you enjoy #NewsMumOnline do let me know, and I will do it more often.