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Internet access | Unions need to get their story straight

Did anyone else enjoy the ludicrous union comments last week in the case of council workers sacked for spending too much time surfing online?

Nine workers at Neath Port Talbot Council in South Wales left their jobs after it was discovered that they were spending up to two hours a day on internet auction site eBay.

Union officials from Unison had the cheek to blame the council for its employees' actions, claiming it "had put temptation in their way" by allowing access to external sites.

What a joke. Just last month the TUC said a total ban by employers on sites such as eBay and social networking sites Facebook and MySpace would be an "over-reaction".

So which is it guys? Do you want employers to treat their staff like adults and trust them with unlimited access, or do you want firm to install firewalls to prevent access to 'inappropriate' websites.

As Graham Jones, head of strategic personnel at the council, said: "We have a policy of allowing employees to use the internet in their own time. But we clearly don't want them to use it in council time - at the end of the day they are employed to do a job of work, not be shopping online."

That seems sensible enough to me. If the dimwits at the council couldn't understand that policy, it's down to them, simple as that.

Mike Berry |

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