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I think it's less a question of "(politcal) power" than "bargaining power." And bargaining power is not fundamentally about your ability to withhold your labor
by skmurphy 4y ago
I think it's less a question of "(politcal) power" than "bargaining power." And bargaining power is not fundamentally about your ability to withhold your labor from one employer but sell it to other employers.
- malcolmgreaves 4y agoI see what you’re saying, but I must point out that bargaining power is political. The story you’re commenting on is about a group of people working at one location, wanting something more from their employer. The solution to the problem isn’t to leave. Rather, it is to exert influence via collective action to change _that_ situation _there_.
- skmurphy 4y agoTheir mistake was in framing it as collective bargaining. What if they put the owner in the group with them and brainstormed ways to allow everyone to prosper. Casting it as a zero sum interaction--we want more from you and unfortunately you get less--rarely works as well as shared problem solving. At an individual level if they had investigated other opportunities and reported back practices from other employers that matched what they were asking for it would strengthen their case that it would be hard for the employer to attract new employees with their current set of policies. You have to look at it as a dynamic system or ecosystem. "Us against them" is rarely the most effective framing.