Union, union, union, union, union, union.
Agree?
10 replies (most recent on top)
I used to work in a union plant that also struggled to hire maintenance because the contract wages were less than what other employers were paying. The company was offering to significantly increase maintenance wages in the next contract in order to be more competitive on pay. But the union insisted that maintenance pay couldn't increase by a higher percentage than production jobs. There was only one maintenance representative on the local union committee and the rest were all production employees so there was no chance of it ever passing. Just like kindergarten, nobody was allowed to have a box of 64 crayons if somebody else only had 32.
Our union's district leadership couldn't stop patting themselves on the back for the great job they did negotiating our last contract which resulted in 2.5% annual wage increases over 3 years. That contract was negotiated at a time when inflation was running at 7.0%. The following year inflation was 6.5% and the year after that it was 3.4%. So wages have gone up 7.7% during a time when the government says prices have gone up 17.8%. Our grocery bill is up more than that. Homeowner's insurance is up 36% and property taxes are up 21%. Paying union dues while our standard of living continues to decline is ridiculous.
The union is good at protecting workers with seniority but younger workers don't see a benefit for the dues they pay. Our members still get laid off when business is slow and they still get treated like sh!t by management. Our work environment has become toxic just like it has at many non-union workplaces. Turnover is higher than it has ever been and we can't hire skilled trades because the union contract wages for maintenance employees are now $2 to $5 an hour less than other local employers are paying for the same skills.
I agree with Varys' comments! One reason unions exist is due to bad management and well, there's a reason this layoff.com channel blows up. When you look at the way 3M
has treated their loyal workforce, can it get any worse? Not by much, if at all, depending on your situation. What's the lesser of 2 evils? Heard strategies plant management follow to prevent unionization. They're not d-mb.
Yes, 3M employees should all be broadly unionizing worldwide. Union dues are downright cheap compared to the protections a good union can provide.
Plant staff of various types obviously, but also engineering, quality, and lab staff.
A good, constructive, union relationship can be good for the company too. Starting with a more stable workforce. Yes there are some really horrible examples of bad union behavior, but those are basically nothing compared to what many companies do on a regular basis.
Did 3M korea plants attempted to unionize many years back? Heard their senior management was subsequently punished, and investments were diverted off from Korea. Anyone had more information on that learning?
3M plants in a lot of small towns. Unions would balance the power.
Plants should unionize. Dues are petty. Production workers would make more. 3M would get spanked in arbitration so there would be less corrupt behavior. It's not hard to setup and vote. Look into it.
No thanks
fun fact, you should be smoke free at work.... so union plant members cant leave site so they cant cross the street to smoke..... try again.
Us white collar workers would rather not. The last thing I need is mandatory union dues just so plant workers can enjoy more smoke breaks.