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So essentialy in union eyes evey buisness owner is scrooge. Horrible slave drivers mercilessly whipping their employees? I've worked for small buisness owners and they were great to me. We worked hard but were rewarded for it because they knew they were nothing without us. It's this union paranoia that the under-educated fall victim too. "the company is out to get you, they'd eat your corpse if they had to!!!" As far as safety is concerned OSHA laws cover that. Lets take the MTA for example, I was held up for an hour the other day because of "signal problems". Now the LIRR has been around for 100 years, it has also been raining for at least 100 years. Why is it that these union workers that we pay more for that are supposedly more skilled and professional can't figure out how to make the signals work when it rains? What exaclty am I paying more for? My delays?
Why is it that these union workers that we pay more for that are supposedly more skilled and professional can't figure out how to make the signals work when it rains? What exaclty am I paying more for? My delays?
This has little to do with the union, and a lot more to do with age. Some of the signals around the New York subway system are more than 75 years old. Perhaps you would like to make a contribution towards replacing signals, system-wide? If not, then please be patient. There are only a limited number of signal maintainers employed by MTA, and things can get tough when you have to keep a system running around the clock--as opposed to every other subway system in the world, none of which operate 24/7.
I do make a contribution, 400 dollars a month combined LIRR and Metrocard, 800 if you include my wife. Again the signals are 75 years old, they had rain back then right?
I'm very glad I work for a union. I once worked for a large high tech firm in the late-70's that was non-union, and when its empire began to topple I saw more injustices done to people that would never fly in a union atmosphere. It was terrible.
I don't know about sickofnyc99, but I've worked my current union job for 18 years now and there has never been a guarantee against lay-offs. However, there is a protocol on how that is done, whch is almost always by bottom-of-the-totempole-on-up (least length of service), and is always carried out accordingly. What sometimes happens in some of these cases is that the ones whose jobs are spared are not the preferred, best workers.
And that's the bad side to union protection. It is very difficult to get rid of dead wood. It requires a LOT of work and proper documentation from management, and few of them have the balls to take the risks. I guess they're afraid of grievances and lawsuits. Still, I view that as their own fault. There are two very inefficient workers at my job who would have no doubt gotten fired in the private sector long ago.
You nailed it, this is why unions are a cancer that eventually kill their host. Workers are valued on tenure, not quality of the individual or work delivered. Unions provide a safe haven for the unproductive, half-assed worker. Put in 10 years and you're good to go. If revenues are down and labor costs go through the roof because of an unsustainable pension plan who cares if they have lay-offs, there were 100's of people hired after you that will go first. There is no incentive to achieve or do your job better than the next guy, the US was born on competition. This is absent in a union shop. Don't work hard and show up the next guy, your status, pay raises and such are all pre-determined, why contribute anything more than the minimum?
Net result, you have an aging, overpaid, mediocre workforce competing against union free shops that are and will always kick your a$$.
Blaming management for keeping dead weight is rediculous. Have you any idea what litigation costs? Unless you find bodies in the basement of a unproductive worker, he wont be fired. The Unions will drag it through the courts costing the company hunreds of thousands of dollars. Even when a company wins labor litigation they lose. Tolerating dead weight on the payroll is cheaper than litigation.
When refering to "you" in the vernacular, do not take this as a personal attack, it is a generalization. I'm sure you are one of the many tenured union folks who have a great work ethic and contribute at a level in line with your pay scale. The problem is, there is no differentiating, you, the hard working, loyal, tenured employee from them, the tenure protected slacker stealing a paycheck. In fact, if the slacker has a date of hire 3 months before you, he's better than you. Rediculous.
you nailed it, this is why unions are a cancer that eventually kill their host. Workers are valued on tenure, not quality of the individual or work delivered. Unions provide a safe haven for the unproductive, half-assed worker. Put in 10 years and you're good to go. If revenues are down and labor costs go through the roof because of an unsustainable pension plan who cares if they have lay-offs, there were 100's of people hired after you that will go first. There is no incentive to achieve or do your job better than the next guy, the us was born on competition. This is absent in a union shop. Don't work hard and show up the next guy, your status, pay raises and such are all pre-determined, why contribute anything more than the minimum?
Net result, you have an aging, overpaid, mediocre workforce competing against union free shops that are and will always kick your a$$.
Blaming management for keeping dead weight is rediculous. Have you any idea what litigation costs? Unless you find bodies in the basement of a unproductive worker, he wont be fired. The unions will drag it through the courts costing the company hunreds of thousands of dollars. Even when a company wins labor litigation they lose. Tolerating dead weight on the payroll is cheaper than litigation.
When refering to "you" in the vernacular, do not take this as a personal attack, it is a generalization. I'm sure you are one of the many tenured union folks who have a great work ethic and contribute at a level in line with your pay scale. The problem is, there is no differentiating, you, the hard working, loyal, tenured employee from them, the tenure protected slacker stealing a paycheck. In fact, if the slacker has a date of hire 3 months before you, he's better than you. Rediculous.
You nailed it, this is why unions are a cancer that eventually kill their host. Workers are valued on tenure, not quality of the individual or work delivered. Unions provide a safe haven for the unproductive, half-assed worker. Put in 10 years and you're good to go. If revenues are down and labor costs go through the roof because of an unsustainable pension plan who cares if they have lay-offs, there were 100's of people hired after you that will go first. There is no incentive to achieve or do your job better than the next guy, the US was born on competition. This is absent in a union shop. Don't work hard and show up the next guy, your status, pay raises and such are all pre-determined, why contribute anything more than the minimum?
Net result, you have an aging, overpaid, mediocre workforce competing against union free shops that are and will always kick your a$$.
Blaming management for keeping dead weight is rediculous. Have you any idea what litigation costs? Unless you find bodies in the basement of a unproductive worker, he wont be fired. The Unions will drag it through the courts costing the company hunreds of thousands of dollars. Even when a company wins labor litigation they lose. Tolerating dead weight on the payroll is cheaper than litigation.
When refering to "you" in the vernacular, do not take this as a personal attack, it is a generalization. I'm sure you are one of the many tenured union folks who have a great work ethic and contribute at a level in line with your pay scale. The problem is, there is no differentiating, you, the hard working, loyal, tenured employee from them, the tenure protected slacker stealing a paycheck. In fact, if the slacker has a date of hire 3 months before you, he's better than you. Rediculous.
For every ying there is a yang so that everyone can find someone who agree's with them. So it is with this post.
For every ying there is a yang so that everyone can find someone who agree's with them. So it is with this post.
Hey, you're a union guy, probabally with enough tenure to go the distance. No worries, I won't and can't kill your goose laying the golden eggs. Though I feel bad for the new guys entering unions who will be shot in the back of the head the moment any pressure is put on your pension or benies.
Unions are the ultimate FUIGM establishment. Notice when CBA's are ratified the labor concessions always only affect the new guys. Lay-offs, comp, etc. The tenured folks are untouchable. I don't blame you for recruiting new guys into the union, you need more bodies to stack to keep away the rising waters when the dam breaks.
Without tenure, you're nothing but a negotiating chip.
Hey, you're a union guy, probabally with enough tenure to go the distance. No worries, I won't and can't kill your goose laying the golden eggs. Though I feel bad for the new guys entering unions who will be shot in the back of the head the moment any pressure is put on your pension or benies.
Unions are the ultimate FUIGM establishment. Notice when CBA's are ratified the labor concessions always only affect the new guys. Lay-offs, comp, etc. The tenured folks are untouchable. I don't blame you for recruiting new guys into the union, you need more bodies to stack to keep away the rising waters when the dam breaks.
Without tenure, you're nothing but a negotiating chip.
For every ying there is a yang so that everyone can find someone who agree's with them. So it is with this post.
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