Dock strike/Toilet paper shortage??

[mrmikey]

The working class sees these corporations/CEOs making record breaking profits since COVID and people are sick of breaking their backs and getting ripped off to line the golden pockets of their rich stakeholders.

True, same as what I said above re the union head.

 

[tradosaurus]

I worked in a union shop, only thing I saw a union do was protect people that should have been fired years ago. As LBBJ said above, maybe years ago they were required. Kinda doesn't make sense when the loudmouth union head makes almost $900K a year, bet he's roughing it.

On the flip side unions protect older workers that have seniority. Most large companies deserve unions.
After 10 years in manufacturing, as an engineer, I would have joined a union in a heartbeat if I could have.

 

[newbury]

But now it seems the ILA (International Luddites Association?) wants to also ban automation. Do they want also to go back to horse drawn wagons? More jobs for manure shovelers!

 

[LittleBittyBigJohn]

On the flip side unions protect older workers that have seniority.

This is an example of my point above. Way back the unions likely helped fix this issue. Now we have labor laws that specifically provide protections for the workers you describe. I'm not sure how seniority factors in though.

I don't know how to ask without it sounding pointed since this is just text on a screen, but believe that I'm asking honestly not trying to start anything. What should be protected in relation to seniority as quoted above?

 

[2manyrocks]

usually, workers have to hire their own attorney to fight age based firing, and companies have gotten pretty good at "eliminating" positions as a basis for termination. Companies are more afraid of unions in my experience.

 

[WM75Guy]

So what are your thoughts on the dock strike in general? I heard on the news that the workers make from $21-$40 per hour and are asking for 77% increase. As well as no automation allowed ever...

Down here where I'm from there are no unions. From my vantage point I don't see a lot of necessity for unions. I think - years ago - they were designed to make workplaces safer, to force standardization of pay and to keep workers out of "bondage" - company store kind of thing. I feel like they accomplished their goal and have moved beyond far beyond that. It seems like if they are allowed cart blanch, they could kill the industries they are integrated into.

How much do dockworkers make? Here are the striking workers' salaries.

 

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How much do dockworkers make? Here are the striking workers' salaries.

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Something that I'd like to know is, how has their pay changed in the last 10-20 years?
$5/hr increase each year of the contract sounds like a lot by itself - but that's from the view point of assuming that the number you're starting at is reasonable and has been keeping up with COL consistently.
If their wages haven't been keeping up for a long time, then that increase could easily be seen to be reasonable.

About anti-union sentiments: Get rid of unions and you'll be working 80 hours a week in unsafe conditions before you know it. Though I've never worked in a unionized segment of the workforce, unions are the reason that vast majority of us have any semblance of "work-life balance" and are unlikely to be maimed on the job, and anti-union forces are frothing at the bit to work us all to the bone, and it's absolutely disgusting to see hard working men in jobs that used to kill their workers regularly kissing the licking the bosses boots as if they're going to get anything other than a ruined life out of it.

I'm all for keeping an eye on union bosses - organized crime connections, enriching themselves at the workers' expense, but these are largely boogeymen raised up to scare workers away from being in unions; meanwhile anti-union companies have employed all kinds of illegal action including violence and corrupt politicians of their own to get private militia and public military invovled in busting strikes but you rarely hear about that when people talk about the evils of unions.

 

[tradosaurus]

Something that I'd like to know is, how has their pay changed in the last 10-20 years?
$5/hr increase each year of the contract sounds like a lot by itself - but that's from the view point of assuming that the number you're starting at is reasonable and has been keeping up with COL consistently.
If their wages haven't been keeping up for a long time, then that increase could easily be seen to be reasonable.

About anti-union sentiments: Get rid of unions and you'll be working 80 hours a week in unsafe conditions before you know it. Though I've never worked in a unionized segment of the workforce, unions are the reason that vast majority of us have any semblance of "work-life balance" and are unlikely to be maimed on the job, and anti-union forces are frothing at the bit to work us all to the bone, and it's absolutely disgusting to see hard working men in jobs that used to kill their workers regularly kissing the licking the bosses boots as if they're going to get anything other than a ruined life out of it.

I'm all for keeping an eye on union bosses - organized crime connections, enriching themselves at the workers' expense, but these are largely boogeymen raised up to scare workers away from being in unions; meanwhile anti-union companies have employed all kinds of illegal action including violence and corrupt politicians of their own to get private militia and public military involved in busting strikes but you rarely hear about that when people talk about the evils of unions.

Well said. Corporations for the most part are corrupt and evil.
Having worked salary in the private sector in a strong union environment I saw the benefits of being a union member but couldn't join because of my degree and position.

 

[etpm]

Something that I'd like to know is, how has their pay changed in the last 10-20 years?
$5/hr increase each year of the contract sounds like a lot by itself - but that's from the view point of assuming that the number you're starting at is reasonable and has been keeping up with COL consistently.
If their wages haven't been keeping up for a long time, then that increase could easily be seen to be reasonable.

About anti-union sentiments: Get rid of unions and you'll be working 80 hours a week in unsafe conditions before you know it. Though I've never worked in a unionized segment of the workforce, unions are the reason that vast majority of us have any semblance of "work-life balance" and are unlikely to be maimed on the job, and anti-union forces are frothing at the bit to work us all to the bone, and it's absolutely disgusting to see hard working men in jobs that used to kill their workers regularly kissing the licking the bosses boots as if they're going to get anything other than a ruined life out of it.

I'm all for keeping an eye on union bosses - organized crime connections, enriching themselves at the workers' expense, but these are largely boogeymen raised up to scare workers away from being in unions; meanwhile anti-union companies have employed all kinds of illegal action including violence and corrupt politicians of their own to get private militia and public military invovled in busting strikes but you rarely hear about that when people talk about the evils of unions.

I am like you, having never worked in a union shop. I am also like you and realize we need unions to keep workers being treated fairly. Just because the head of the union gets paid too much is not a reason to penalize the workers. Unions may need some cleaning up, but that doesn't mean that they should be done away with. Health care, reasonable hours, and workplace safety are all the result of unions. Who wants to be permanently maimed because of bad safety practices? Because it used to happen all the time. And to children too. Abolish unions and it will all come back.
Eric

 

[ultrarunner]

Worked in both and lots of highly skilled toolmakers in the Union Shop where I worked.

That said it was a learning curve for me to get up to speed.