Public sector strikes hit Germany

The BBC reports:

German public sector workers fighting plans to extend their working hours have widened their strike action to cover most of the country.

An estimated 20,000 local and regional authority staff including nurses, cooks and cleaners have joined the largest public sector strike in 14 years.

They are protesting against plans to extend weekly working hours by 90 minutes, from 38.5 to 40 hours a week.

Their union, Verdi, has said the longer hours would be used to cut jobs.

If these public sector workers could get a better deal somewhere else in the private sector they'd go get it.Instead they want to blackmail the taxpayers.That's the essence of the Welfare State:blackmail.