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Those that wish to bring the end to unions need to be careful what they wish for.
My father was born in the 1920's. He told me that years ago the foremen carried lengths of rubber hose to strike the workers with on the factory floor. It was legal then. Some of the older men had scars on their heads from getting whacked like that.
Small wonder working people were emboldened to walk off the job and form unions. Then the police whacked them on the street with those clubs they carried.
My dad was an employer in the clothing biz.
Of course he complained about the Union.
At the same time, I always cast my lot with the workers (small factory) who, without the Union, would have had zero. Not to say my Dad is a bad guy, but the tendencies of "The Boss" are to pay as little as possible and give as little as possible in comforts and benefits.
As with other subjects, this is a complicated one. I'd say "ask the Germans" since they seem to be doing things right in terms of industry. Note - their workers have it MUCH better than most Americans and are more productive.
Since we are not likely to become enlightened in the USA (we allow a more predatory form of capitalism), my opinion is this. If an employer is well known for treating their employees properly, then a Union is optional.
Examples - Costco is well known for paying twice what Walmart does...not due to union (I don't know whether or not they are), but due to an enlightened founder.
Nissan in TN, where the union was just voted down....there was an interview with one worker there who said they made $29 plus benefits. If I was in his shoes I'd probably like things to stay the way they are (that's very decent pay for the south)...
On the other hand, there are a LOT of places where employees are treated like dirt.
I was an employer for 20 years - in retail and importing where we didn't have any unions. I paid my employees over double what most retail did and they made a lot of money for me. Some of them stayed with me that entire 20 years. That's the ideal situation...but, unfortunately, greed comes into play.
No doubt that Union management became incredibly corrupt. I met a couple of the bosses way back when and they looked like they stepped out of a movie...all slicked up. My cousin worked for Jackie Presser....a guy with a mixed record. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jackie_Presser
I'd say the only worst than a modern Union...is no Union.
I'm sorry, I cannot agree that unions are irrelevant, outdated, or unnecessary. As a matter of fact I think unions are more important in todays world much more than ever.
I also believe that although better tax breaks would be desirable for employers, restrictions are key to a healthy American society. Penalizing companies that leave our country, penalizing companies that use foreign labor, and a whole host of anti-American schemes to benefit the upper crust and leave the blue collar and other workers holding the bag must be addressed. The greedy results of the brainy bean boys is the main reason America needs to be made great again.
Unions are not perfect but they did give the workers a voice. They help. But yes, they are in decline. Is there anything else in decline that you can think of?
In states with strong unions, state legislators enact more laws pertaining to workers’ rights, safety and health because the union lobbyists get their attention on these matters. All workers union and nonunion benefit from these state laws. I’ve never seen a company or one individual bending the ear of a legislator to benefit the workers. Organized labor has a place in this country, just look at the nations that don’t have union labor.
In states with strong unions, state legislators enact more laws pertaining to workers’ rights, safety and health because the union lobbyists get their attention on these matters. All workers union and nonunion benefit from these state laws. I’ve never seen a company or one individual bending the ear of a legislator to benefit the workers. Organized labor has a place in this country, just look at the nations that don’t have union labor.
What I like about being a union family are the benefits. To me that's worth it's weight in gold. Healthcare is so expensive these days. But the union pays for it all. I worked for a very large corporation years ago. I got paid well but what they took out of my paycheck for insurance was ridiculous. It pretty left me with nothing.
What I like about being a union family are the benefits. To me that's worth it's weight in gold. Healthcare is so expensive these days. But the union pays for it all. I worked for a very large corporation years ago. I got paid well but what they took out of my paycheck for insurance was ridiculous. It pretty left me with nothing.
The yearly cost of union dues, when Unions negotiated the benefits, was a tremendous saving.. Now, people have more deduction for things that were once part of the benefit packages, and they cost a lot more, than the meager cost of union dues.
I don't think many people would even balk IF it went up to $100 a month in Unions dues, if it made the Medical Insurance deduction go away, and they still got dental coverage, prescription insurance, and PENSIONS. When the average Union Dues were around $30... or so... and people complained. It's Absurd.
If find it amazing how American's duped themselves to fight against Unions?? !!! ??? and all they got for their fight was "NO BENEFITS" higher medical, now they even pay for dental and eye care, and they have NO PENSION PLAN... Yet.. companies are making profits that are 10 and in some cases 100 time higher than every before in history.
As long as the wealthy and those in suits and riding degree's can dupe the masses, they will keep American's as indentured servants, unable to save and everything costing them tremendously more.. while the suits and degree riders make a fortune for doing less, and investing their time in how to keep from paying the actual labor pool.
My opinion: We should thank unions for making workplaces safer and for implementing weekends off and 40hr work weeks, but I think they've outlived their usefulness. In 2017, they seem to hurt the job economy more than help it. States with large union presences have slower growing economies and slower job growth.
I don't think anyone can dispute that Unions did a lot of good things in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
However, Unions have become too corrupt and inefficient. They need to reform themselves. Many public unions own their own health insurance provider, force the government to only purchase insurance for the union members from it, and charge way above market prices. Public unions also have a lot of their members on their pension boards and are math deniers to push an insolvent system.
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