A
anonymous6
Guest
same as shoplifters. getting something and not paying for it.
Anonymous 10
Guest
SCABS
Wally
BrownCafe Innovator & King of Puns
I'm in a closed shop so I can't imagine how this works. Are the non-union harassed more, fired? With no protection, it would seem to me, you are at their complete mercy.
Do union members watch these scabs like a hawk, in order to make sure they don't get away with anything? It would burn me knowing they take home almost $1000 extra dollars per year because I pay union dues.
Do union members watch these scabs like a hawk, in order to make sure they don't get away with anything? It would burn me knowing they take home almost $1000 extra dollars per year because I pay union dues.
Scabs, thieves, cheat, scrounge, economic embezzler, etc.
Call it whatever you want. But if you have the ability to join the union and just chose not to, I have zero use or empathy for you. I would never go the extra step if I was their steward. I would be a minimalist for them. My only obligation would be to see if their rights are not violated. Beyond that, screw SCAB.
On the other hand, as far as my real union brothers, if done a bunch of evil things to get people out of a jam.
Call it whatever you want. But if you have the ability to join the union and just chose not to, I have zero use or empathy for you. I would never go the extra step if I was their steward. I would be a minimalist for them. My only obligation would be to see if their rights are not violated. Beyond that, screw SCAB.
On the other hand, as far as my real union brothers, if done a bunch of evil things to get people out of a jam.
728ups
All Trash No Trailer
I find it VERY amusing when some of the Freeloaders get mad when called out about being Freeloaders.
We have a group of Freeloaders in my building that love to proclaim they have 'rights' and are 'entitled to representation' .These idiots are (believe it or nit ) anti union.I have heard them say the Union just takes dues and protects the slackers,but have no qualms earning Union pay and getting Union benefits
We have a group of Freeloaders in my building that love to proclaim they have 'rights' and are 'entitled to representation' .These idiots are (believe it or nit ) anti union.I have heard them say the Union just takes dues and protects the slackers,but have no qualms earning Union pay and getting Union benefits
I would tend to place some of the blame on the union as well though. I make it a point to chat with the brand new people for a few minutes and let them know who the stewards are. I tell them what they are getting in return for their dues. I think sometimes, people don't know what they have.
cynic
Well-Known Member
I see them written up for more things they blindly initial or sign whatever they are "told" to sign and have no clue as to their rights under the contract. They're shuffled around the hub to help whatever area or belt needs help, getting sent to unload trailers only to be loading those same boxes 30 minutes later when they return to an egress infested belt. Sucks to be them - they get what they pay for...
At the same time I don't see much effort put forth by the IBT to sign these folks up either and it's definitely not part of their new hire orientation...
I'm perfectly fine with having a beef with the union. They can have their opinion as they are partially right. Maybe someone can point out to them that their hustling ways has them exactly where the slackers are. Why is it hard to understand that the union doesn't protect slackers per se, it protects employees as a whole. They'd be better off turning their vitriol on to the slackers for their attitudes than the union for doing what they are there for.
PiedmontSteward
RTW-4-Less
It depends.
It's much easier to be a scab in the hub than it is to scab while driving, simply because so many more things are out of your control as a driver. If a scab comes to work every day on time and works as instructed without any grief, they typically get to skate. But if they end up having attendance problems or get mouthy with their manager, they get away with far less than a union member does as most stewards won't really "go to bat" for them.
We're required to "represent" them (and also process their grievances) or else the local can be sued for breaching their duty of fair representation. But I can sit in the office and clean my fingernails while they talk themselves out of a job and I've fulfilled that duty. As far as "work rule" issues that become disputes (getting "sold out" to another area when junior workers are available, getting skipped over for a "layoff" day when the area is overstaffed and they wanted to leave, being forced to stay late, being harassed for production, etc.) they are **** outta luck.
PiedmontSteward
RTW-4-Less
Contractually, in RTW states, union stewards are given 15 minutes on the clock to hand out union cards and encourage new hires to join the union. If this isn't being done in your hub, then the local needs to be informed because that's the first and best chance for us to sign up new members.
We also do quite a bit of internal organizing in RTW states, where the locals puts stewards on lost-time and we sit outside the hub talking with members and signing up those that are willing.
cynic
Well-Known Member
First phone call I make Monday morning will be to the local.
We have one steward inside our hub and they work preload (M-friend), we don't have a steward on my sunrise sort (T-S).
PiedmontSteward
RTW-4-Less
So what happens when someone gets jammed up on Sunrise? That's no bueno.
Macbrother
Well-Known Member
In my center there is no difference in treatment or interaction between union, mgmt, and non-union whatsoever.
cynic
Well-Known Member
Exactly. Non-members get slammed because they typically sign what they're told to. If you're an IBT member, you know to ask for a steward. (Good luck with that management...) I've filed on the PT and FT sup's for not providing representation, but the bottom line is, as you said, no bueno.
Overpaid Union Thug
Well-Known Member
Exactly the point I made a few days ago on another thread. All this "scab" and "freeloader" talk doesn't accomplish anything positive. All it does is drive a wedge between current members and potential members. And people claiming that a steward should give minimum representation (or less) is about the dumbest idea there is. The intelligent approach would be to show the potential dues payer that the dues are well worth the money they'd be paying. The idea is to make them want to join by showing them why they should. Not by childishly belittling them by calling them names and withholding representation like a sulking child that doesn't get their way.
cynic
Well-Known Member
Oh, and yes, it is demoralizing to have such low PT membership and to watch people getting jerked around the hub like yo-yo's.
I unload trailers so there isn't an opportunity to "socialize" the benefits of being a union member to the new hires as we're typically by ourselves unloading a trailer.
I have given consideration to try and become a steward but I do realize there is an incredible amount of responsibility that comes with that role, especially if you had to provide proper/correct representation to someone facing termination.
I unload trailers so there isn't an opportunity to "socialize" the benefits of being a union member to the new hires as we're typically by ourselves unloading a trailer.
I have given consideration to try and become a steward but I do realize there is an incredible amount of responsibility that comes with that role, especially if you had to provide proper/correct representation to someone facing termination.
I do it on my own time. I start about half an hour earlier than the hub does shifting cars. So I have to do it after the sort. Or during break, but I don't like to intrude on folks only 10 minutes to zen out. We have supervisors that actually like the union because of the shafting they get day in and day out. So when there's trainees they tell me where they camp out and if I decided to help load a trailer I can talk about whatever I want so long as we stay productive. Is it a huge responsibility? Sure...but I look at it as giving out info and protecting basic union rights. If things are really hairy, my job is to take notes and have my guy keep his mouth mostly shut and say yes, no, and I don't recall. My BA handles the hairier crap that's beyond my ken.
728ups
All Trash No Trailer
The Fulltime Scabs,Freeloaders an Moochers are employees with 20 years plus seniority. I take great pleasure of informing them of their status
PiedmontSteward
RTW-4-Less
So a non-member with 10 or 15 years at UPS that has never signed a union card and never will should continually be given a free pass while they enjoy a pension, good health benefits, and a $20/hr+ wage?
I absolutely agree that non-members should be educated and be shown what their union can do for them. But some people are simply never going to sign a card because they feel like they don't have to.
I really hate to make this analogy, but it's the same thing with tipping. Most people will tip between ~12-15% if the service was solid because they realize most wait staff rely on their tips to make a living. Some people tip above and beyond 20% because they feel it's the right thing to do. But there's a sliver of society that will always stiff a waitress because they are amoral low lifes without any sense of shame. The waitress can re-fill their drink a hundred times and bring out their order in record time and they'll still stiff her because that's what they do.
