5 ms·

Like so many unions, they want to limit the supply side (laborers) so the wages can go up. Or force a minimum wage so employers hand pick the better skilled em

Like so many unions, they want to limit the supply side (laborers) so the wages can go up. Or force a minimum wage so employers hand pick the better skilled employees anyway. So of course no union will say it out loud but the economic effect of their policy is to shut out the less skilled workers to artificially benefit the more skilled workers.

rtpg 12y ago
>So of course no union will say it out loud but the economic effect of their policy is to shut out the less skilled workers to artificially benefit the more skilled workers. Or to raise prices for FB and co. The lever works both ways.
Alupis 12y ago
More skilled workers? My father has worked in management for 20 years at our city's municipal public transit system, and can very honestly state the union keeps the lowest skilled and least deserving employed. Petty in-house suits vs management because they want them to work, or suing management because management picks up a wrench and tries to help out the motor pool. Or suits among each other because someone did another's job. The insanity goes on. The union sucks worker's pay (not optional btw in most places, even if you don't want it). They don't help anyone, only spur in-fighting. Argue for and provide yearly wage increases regardless of work performance (even during years when the company takes massive losses due to market turndown). How about we check and see how much the union rep's are taking home per year? Probably an awful lot more than the workers they are "representing" (not to mention it's the worker's money the rep is pocketing). It's simply a scheme now-days. More anecdotal evidence? How about the Raley's Supermarket worker union? I've known several people who have worked there in different capacities. Raley's, the company, will terminate an individual's employment if they do not agree with, sign up with, and pay mandatory dues to the worker union. Why? Well that's because that is the agreement the worker's union strong-armed the management union into years ago (probably because it means any non-mgnt employee now is obligated to pay a portion of their hard earned paycheck directly to the union). What does the Raley's worker union fight for and represent their members for? Better hours? Nope. Better pay? Yep, yearly mandatory increases regardless of performance, and regardless of how the company as-a-whole is doing. More anecdotal evidence! How about the forced shutdown of Hostess which left 30,000 workers without any job, pension or benefits! The Teamsters (the Teamsters!) at least had the sense to strike a deal with Hostess mgmt, but the Baker's union did not care about anything other than more money (even though Hostess was on the verge of bankruptcy!). Well, without a deal to freeze all pay increases for two measly years, Hostess was left with no choice but to close up shop and leave 30,000 employees out in the cold. Fat lot of good the unions did here. Ya, unions are a relic of the past. Sorry, no sane person will work 20 hours a day for $0.50 an hour, even without a union "representing them". There is no point to unions anymore, especially in a competitive marketplace. Competition will always trump standardization.

rtpg 12y ago

>So of course no union will say it out loud but the economic effect of their policy is to shut out the less skilled workers to artificially benefit the more skilled workers. Or to raise prices for FB and co. The lever works both ways.

Alupis 12y ago

More skilled workers? My father has worked in management for 20 years at our city's municipal public transit system, and can very honestly state the union keeps the lowest skilled and least deserving employed. Petty in-house suits vs management because they want them to work, or suing management because management picks up a wrench and tries to help out the motor pool. Or suits among each other because someone did another's job. The insanity goes on. The union sucks worker's pay (not optional btw in most places, even if you don't want it). They don't help anyone, only spur in-fighting. Argue for and provide yearly wage increases regardless of work performance (even during years when the company takes massive losses due to market turndown). How about we check and see how much the union rep's are taking home per year? Probably an awful lot more than the workers they are "representing" (not to mention it's the worker's money the rep is pocketing). It's simply a scheme now-days. More anecdotal evidence? How about the Raley's Supermarket worker union? I've known several people who have worked there in different capacities. Raley's, the company, will terminate an individual's employment if they do not agree with, sign up with, and pay mandatory dues to the worker union. Why? Well that's because that is the agreement the worker's union strong-armed the management union into years ago (probably because it means any non-mgnt employee now is obligated to pay a portion of their hard earned paycheck directly to the union). What does the Raley's worker union fight for and represent their members for? Better hours? Nope. Better pay? Yep, yearly mandatory increases regardless of performance, and regardless of how the company as-a-whole is doing. More anecdotal evidence! How about the forced shutdown of Hostess which left 30,000 workers without any job, pension or benefits! The Teamsters (the Teamsters!) at least had the sense to strike a deal with Hostess mgmt, but the Baker's union did not care about anything other than more money (even though Hostess was on the verge of bankruptcy!). Well, without a deal to freeze all pay increases for two measly years, Hostess was left with no choice but to close up shop and leave 30,000 employees out in the cold. Fat lot of good the unions did here. Ya, unions are a relic of the past. Sorry, no sane person will work 20 hours a day for $0.50 an hour, even without a union "representing them". There is no point to unions anymore, especially in a competitive marketplace. Competition will always trump standardization.