Archaeology has long suffered from the poor working conditions and job security across the profession (see discussion
here, for example
this news item that sets the case clearly). There was an archaeologists' strike in Ireland last year, this month archaeologists of Museum of London Archaeology (MOLA)
went on strike in the first of a series of one-day strikes in a dispute over pay. Heritage Action make a very cogent point about the issue (“
How DARE archaeologists go on strike this week?” Well…' 14/12/2019), contrasting the position of archaeological professionals and artefact hunters:
It’s because inflation has reduced the wages of these highly educated, dedicated professionals to an unsustainable level. That’s bad enough, but it’s even worse when you remember the financial rewards which come to the self-seekers below are entirely inflation-proofed and have been for decades!
How ironic that dozens of archaeologists on very modest salaries are employed to offer encouragement to such people as if doing so is the norm elsewhere in the world. Anyone think Britain is bonkers?
The Treasure ransom valuation is based on current market values for the loose artefacts as 'collectables' and the market value of course goes up with the rate of inflation.
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