[starman]

So we were about to leave for Atlantic City for the weekend, until we find out that the restaurant workers union went on strike. All the restaurants we were going to are closed, or understaffed.

Imagine spending a ton of cash to go to AC before this started, and you find out that you can't get room service, can't eat anywhere except the Borgata, or if you find a place you have to wait in line.

These are one of the reasons why I hate unions. They cry about unfair wages while screwing the people they serve, and then the casino loses money on lost income for the period of time the strike went on for, and then people lose their jobs because of it. Pretty f*cking stupid if you ask me.

We have until around 1 or 2pm to leave before the whole weekend turns into a complete waste, and we can't go back until the weekend of the 23rd.

Mike

[faragbre967]

I'd pretty much agree with you, except sometimes unions have valid points. Sometimes the companies they're part of really do treat the people like ****, so unions can be good. However, nowadays I think they do more harm than good. Imagine what would happen if people that really do get underpaid, like teachers and cops, went on strike.

[Ghoser777]

Like my school (I'm a teacher and a union member of a suburban Chicago high school) might be doing on Monday. It would be my first, so I really don't know what to expect.

It definitely is an incovenience, but its also one of the few leverage strategies that the union has.

[ort888]

If it weren't for unions we would all be working 7 days a week with no benefits.

[Truepop]

it's not unions you hate, it's strikes. unions are more valid than most people think. like ort888 said, If it weren't for unions we would all be working 7 days a week with no benefits and to add, we would have started those jobs in 5th grade and lost 3 fingers on one hand by 8th and if we happen to make it to 30 we would still be in the same dead end job with only one hand.

that's like saying you hate christmas because most of the stores are closed, well not quite.

[Mastrap]

Originally posted by ort888:
If it weren't for unions we would all be working 7 days a week with no benefits.

Exactly. If you look at pre-union working conditions for the average worker you'd be horrified. Child labour, no holidays, no sick leave, no pensions. Exploitation was the norm.

I do agree with starman however in that some unions have too much power. In the UK unions single-handedly destroyed the thriving ports of London and Liverpool, effectively holding the country to ransom. Margaret Thatcher, not a natural favourite of mine, broke that hold. In Germany the unions are obstructing desperately needed reforms of the welfare system. Unfortunately nobody seems to have the balls to take them on.

[Disgruntled Head of C-3PO]

Originally posted by starman:

Imagine spending a ton of cash to go to AC before this started, and you find out that you can't get room service, can't eat anywhere except the Borgata, or if you find a place you have to wait in line.

Imagine working your ass off and not getting paid enough.

[The Godfather]

If you want non-unionized servers, hire illegal workers.

[ambush]

oh yeah unions suck... yeah...

I like evil bosses instead... I like SLAVERY yeah that's what I like.

[OldManMac]

Companies that screw their employees suck too. IMO, that's more of a problem than unions, with our real wages declining, while the rich get richer.

[Apple Pro Underwear]

let's bring back slavery too!!! serfs and indentured servants too!


yo Mike,

this post was most uncool. people go on strike as a last resort not because to screw your weekend. think about the families out there not affiliated with starman.

[ambush]

the worst thing happening could possibly be this: proletarians kacing solidarity toward their fellow proletarian workers.

[starman]

What's uncool is that you give me sh*t for this post before doing any research on the strike itself.

Mike

[Yose]

Originally posted by Ghoser777:
Like my school (I'm a teacher and a union member of a suburban Chicago high school) might be doing on Monday. It would be my first, so I really don't know what to expect.

It definitely is an incovenience, but its also one of the few leverage strategies that the union has.

This is how school strikes go in Toronto / Ontario. Union goes on strike to get what it wants and thus the school board don't have to pay salary for x number of days. After they save enough money on salaries to cover the increase in wages for the length of the new contract they come to an agreement or the province legislates them back to work.

Makes a whole lotta sense.

Makes for a whole lotta pissed off parents.

Unions... Fine they can help but from what I see they breed a lot of laziness and poor workers with good working conditions.

I hope your strike goes well though - education strikes hurt so many people but so do overstressed teachers and schools with little funding.

[Truepop]

Originally posted by starman:
What's uncool is that you give me sh*t for this post before doing any research on the strike itself.

Mike

What's uncool is saying unions in general suck without explaining the strike to us. I don't live in AC nor do I plan to go there and I seem to be able to eat round here where I am so I don't know which strike you are talking about.

are they striking for unfair work conditions? because the boss is cutting jobs arbitrarily? maybe they want better a salary.

[Spliffdaddy]

unions are nothing but legalized extortion.

If you don't like the job - then quit.

Employers that do not pay fair wages will simply not have any employees.

[MacNStein]

Originally posted by Spliffdaddy:
unions are nothing but legalized extortion.

If you don't like the job - then quit.

Employers that do not pay fair wages will simply not have any employees.

Bingo. Unions might have been neccessary when there were fewer job opportunities within a given geographic location. Now, however, given the state of the global market and with so many career choices, and such a low unemployment rate, the power is firmly in the hands of the worker. Unions just squeeze the life out of companies who are already working within very slim margins to begin with.

[TheBadgerHunter]

Originally posted by ambush:
oh yeah unions suck... yeah...

I like evil bosses instead... I like SLAVERY yeah that's what I like.

Unions: a poor solution to a temporary problem.

[Buckaroo]

The problem I have with Unions is that they claim that when you hire a union worker, you are getting the best trained person for the job. The problem is, they won't put their money where thier mouth is and gauarntee their work. If they screw up, your screwed not the union worker.

If you pay a union worker instead of the cheapest labor availabe, to build your house and if they screw up and the house has to be torn down and rebuilt, you have to pay, not the union worker.

The union may have done good in the early years, but now they are nothing more than organized scum.

[Spliffdaddy]

Unions played a pivotal role in the worker's rights legislation we benefit from today. They became victims of their own success, it seems. Perhaps in the future there may be another period of time where we experience a 'employers market', once again - and unions could play a protective role for employees who might otherwise be taken advantage of by unscrupulous employers.

In recent times, the acceptance of labor laws which protect and define workers' rate-of-pay & safety conditions - among other things - has minimized the role of labor unions in today's workplace.

For reasons unexplainable, the AFL-CIO has bided its time while its membership rolls fade into oblivion...and seems satisfied to be a primary fund-raising source and political advocate for the DNC.

There is no better method, in my opinion, of disenfranchising and alienating fully half of the citizens in one fell swoop. < Music artists please take note. If your mission is to be an advocate of 'the employee', then you have accept the fact that half 'the employees' are not Democrats. Be an advocate of the worker or be a fund-raising tool for the DNC - but you gotta pick one. Ya know what I'm sayin?

But anyways, that's how I feel about it. I guess I should mention that I've been a union-represented* employee for the last 16 years. If that skews my opinion, or something.


*my wages and benefits are negotiated for me without my consent, and without membership in the union. There is no escape. However, I am not required to pay union dues.

[Apple Pro Underwear]

i think in this case — employees working without a contract — is moderately shitty. they can get fired anytime if the casinos hire another company to provide service. possibly a company like walmart used to hire illegal immigrants at $4 an hour. Just as bad, the casinos can take away benefits if their is no contract.

(come on starman, u know i live in NY)


I AGREE WITH BUCKAROO in that some union workers, especially construction are annoying and have a bad attitude about working. (Mandatory breaks, mandatory working hours). They basically have no care of what they are doing because they know they can't be fired and only want to fulfill their obligation.

At my company, I enjoy what I do. I went to a special college for it and I will gladly stay late if need be. They pay me an agreed upon wage and time and half and we are both helping each other.

[Mr. Blur]

i work in a unionized workplace....and i have even spent 3 years on the union executive. i have mixed feelings about it....the union *can* do some good but too often they have unreasonable demands and they breed that "lemming" mentality where people are not allowed to think for themselves without being branded "scab" or some other insult. i also get really tired of the self-righteous attitude that the unionists almost always have - like no union has ever been wrong about anything (not!). all unions are not the same either (duh)...the trick is to find a healthy balance between the union and management - if the union is too strong then it can be bad for the business and lead to over-inflated wages for some jobs, but if you have a powerless union then there's basically no point to having one at all. like i said....i have mixed feelings.....

[wdlove]

During the foundation of Unions they had a very valid place in society. They got rid of child labor, brought on the 40 hour work week, and made the work place safer. Now there are nothing more that a political action committee fro the DNC.