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feylin -> RE: Unionization Bill Threatened with Veto (2/15/2007 10:02:53 PM)
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quote:
ORIGINAL: farglebargle
The Union "Leadership" have simply sold out and become part of the Boss Class.
http://www.statesman.com/business/content/business/stories/other/02/08/8walmart.html
I cannot fathom why a union leader would sit in the same room as a representative of Walmart. I understand that union reps and CEOs need to be able to sit down and communicate, but Walmart??
I belonged to a strong local, even became a steward. Had to represent a scab a time or two and gave it my best (even though I thought he should be shown the door) since I was trained that it was illegal to do otherwise. But he was the minority in more than two hundred members I assisted day in and day out.
Sure most of the time I just fought for fair vacation practices and argued grey areas of the national contract, but here's an example of something that happened in the late 90s. Male managers of this predominantly female workforce wanted to hold a folded dollar bill against workers' thighs to measure the distance between the hem of her shorts to the top of her knee to determine if her shorts met dress code requirements. That had to go out of the building. Unbelievable. Result: practice discontinued, plant manager promoted to DC job.
My stepfather was a Teamster so I was raised from almost birth to respect picket lines and when I joined my own union that idea was reinforced in my mind. After being involuntarily reassigned, I discovered all locals are not created equal and an unsupportive, lazy rank and file gets exactly what they deserve from the leaders they vote in office. (I should note this same local got me a $9,000 settlement a year after I had to quit to retain my sanity. Some of my reassigned friends who stuck it out got almost $25,000. The service just figured a blatant contract violation was worth the payout. I liked my job, though, and would have preferred keeping it.)
Anyone who thinks unions are antiquated should work a day in that plant near Philly. Its like stepping back in time.
Now I work for an insurance company. <laughs> So the fact that a union leader and Walmart are going to come up with a health insurance reform doubly scares me. I know my company uses and promotes consumer-based health insurance. In my case, it means you pay into a health plan but don't actually receive any benefits unless someone beats you into a coma ~ and that only kicks in after a high deductible. I am sure others are familiar with the health savings plans. Is it the wave of the future? No doubt. I just miss my union dental plan, I really do. I actually get better benefits from my car insurance.
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