ARE YOU PRO-UNION OR ANTI-UNION?

by Mary 71 Replies latest jw friends

• 

  brinjen

  Once in a while, you find a company that makes its employees' welfare a concern. That's the way it should be.

  Absolutely! I'll give you an example of the best boss I've ever had. The company is in the business of electronic assembly and it's in South Australia (if I still lived there, I'd still be working for this guy). Mostly proto-typing, placing components on boards, soldering, cleaning then testing.

  The boss ran the company with the view of "how would I like to be treated by my boss?". Easy going, very easy to approach kind of guy. Enjoyed a particular job? Just had to say so and he'd make sure you got that job again. Didn't like a certain job? He'd minimise those so they were spread as much as possible around the company so no one had to spend a lot of time on them, but they still got done. Finished your work for the week early? Go home, you still got paid anyway. This guy even pays you for your job interview.

  In return, we worked hard for him. I surprised myself with the quality of work I was able to do in a very short amount of time. Clients used to visit often and always remark on the happy atmosphere at this place. It almost looked like the workers were happy to be there.

  Ironically, this guy is rolling in the cash, he's not even 40 and he could quite comfortably retire tomorrow if he wanted to. By looking after his staff, they in turn look after his company.
• 

  free2beme

  While I feel UNIONS had their place in history and served a purpose to get laws passed and fight abuse in the workplace, I think their time has passed. Now UNIONS are something that collect dues, do little and are often targeted to be an excuse to downsize in locations that would have otherwise been left open. Plus, from what I have experienced they do nothing to help their people, but be late on your dues and suddenly you know they exist.
• 

  thecarpenter

  I'm a union carpenter working in NYC right now and I have to say that the carpenter's union has made a huge difference in providing better conditions, benefits, and pay. Before I joined, I had to work under some really tough conditions, sometimes even dangerous. Since I joined, job security has gotten better, I make more than twice what I was paid before (I kid you not), the overall benefits package is unbelievably good (I had virtually no benefits before), and I have a great pension plan in place. I also noticed that the engineers on my job work more hours and make less money than I do. They also have a very weak union. So it really depends on the solidarity of the workers and the type of union.
  
  To be fair, there are some negatives (hard to fire lazy and incompetent workers, obnoxious posturing of union officials, some strong handed tactics, etc...) but overall, I am glad I joined.
  
  With that said, the situation in Detroit and other places losing jobs, is really a unique situation. Because other non-union countries are competing, it really isn't a level playing field. A thirty dollar a hour worker isn't likely to provide the same value to a business as a 2 dollar a day worker (all other things being equal). Because globalization isn't going to go away, it would be kind of foolish not to adapt in some way. The US auto industry isn't going to be able to compete unless they make changes (which we see happening). Even giving up wages isn't likely to stem the outflow of work to other countries. I can't blame this on the union or the worker as much as I blame the situation. Eventually though, these other countries will unionize and the playing field will get a little more level but this will take years.
• 

  hillbilly

  When GM spun off the parts biz, DELPHI the union contract between the UAW and the old GM workers stayed. Delphi continued to provide parts to GM at a loss for years.. but was able to find other work to bid ....steering and chassis was selling parts to Toyota, Mopar, Mercedes etc. They found out that some of the replacment parts business ( they have to provide a stock of factory parts for dealers etc) was still making stuff on quotes that were over 10 years old... some parts were going out the door at a 400% loss.

  Even after the bankruptcy Delphi Steering was still a money maker... and was sold to TRW last year. TRW kept the GM contract in place.. but sent a clear message that a "new sherrif was in town", to the floor.

  The giant multi story cube farm over in engineering is nearly empty. TRW also cleaned out the OTHER GM tradition... very top heavy and non productive engineering and process people.

  Many saw the new order and bailed on early out offers... others failed appriasels and left.

  You are right...US Auto is a strange case of a special kind of failure... GM, Ford and Mopar and the UAW have a special kind of co-depency that is very toxic for all concerned.

  Last note... if everyone took care of their folks like family there would be no need for Union brotherhoods. Some people are just good to work for... others are not. Unions will always exist because of the same potential reasons that made the labor movement happen in the first place.

  ~Hill
• 

  BurnTheShips

  Once in a while, you find a company that makes its employees' welfare a concern. That's the way it should be.
• 

  BurnTheShips

  Once in a while, you find a company that makes its employees' welfare a concern. That's the way it should be.

  A big part of that welfare is staying profitable. You aren't going to make payroll if you go bankrupt. I remember in the early 90s guys were making 70k bending sheetmetal at the airport (I was an FAA licensed airframe tech at the time), crazy!

  Burn
• 

  hillbilly

  Burn... anything whith a TSO has to be worth 4 or 5 times as much. Were you at Eastern before they folded?

  Hill
• 

  BurnTheShips

  Burn... anything whith a TSO has to be worth 4 or 5 times as much. Were you at Eastern before they folded?

  I was still in school. I was fresh out when Pan Am went belly up.

  Burn
• 

  beksbks

  While I feel UNIONS had their place in history and served a purpose to get laws passed and fight abuse in the workplace, I think their time has passed. Now UNIONS are something that collect dues, do little and are often targeted to be an excuse to downsize in locations that would have otherwise been left open. Plus, from what I have experienced they do nothing to help their people, but be late on your dues and suddenly you know they exist.

  Hey Free, not trying to argue or be a jerk, but this is one reason I think we need unions. Bad. Reagan effectively squashed the power of the unions, and began such insane deregulation that we are in the fix we are today. There has to be a way to pressure employers/companies to do the right thing, cuz it sho ain't gonna come naturally. Unions are what we've got. You would not believe how hard retailers like Wal-Mart, and Barnes and Noble (I only mention these two, because I have either read or have personal experience) work to keep unions out. They can't very well move their stores offshore can they? So they spend big bucks and do whatever they can to keep unions out. I was in management at a B&N several years ago. They were terrified of union talk. We had a cork board thingy in the breakroom, where we put up fun stuff, literary stuff, notices for local events etc. We had to take it down, because they were afraid someone would post a comment or flyer on unionizing.
• 

  designs

  Auto workers at the Suzuki Factory in India began rioting over wages, one reported death of a manager. The foreign automakers take advantage of the putdated labor laws dating back to the 1920s when India was under British Rule. Union workers are paid $450.00 per month, and Contract Workers, brought in to replace Union workers, are paid $250.00 per month.