I wrote this comment a couple of nights ago, and it drew no discussion. I hope to inspire discussion here. If for nothing else, then to educate myself. The post I responded to was asking for a solution to the proletariat/Bourgeois problem of modern society.

The only fix is a shift in the popular will.

I'll give my current perspective.

Propaganda has taught Americans to hate communism as an ideology. Not only to hate it, but to stifle any discussion of it as well. But if you look at the power dynamics of the world when radical left ideologies were popping up like wildfire (the industrial revolution really kicked off an unprecedented scale of wealth inequality), the anarchists and communists were the proletariat fighting the ridiculous heirerarchies. These ideologies postulate to either scrap the structure as a whole and start from scratch or drastically change the ownership aspects of the labor forces of the world, thus evening out the playing field. Solidarity through ownership.

Adding context:The labor movement was crippled by Mccarthyism's anti-communistic witch hunts in the 1950s. (Extrapolated from another redditors comment on r/askhistorians, which is a phenomenal subreddit.) More context is suggested to anyone interested in this time period.

It is time for a resurgence in the ideologies that the wage earners and slaves of the world unite in solidarity. It is past time to see through our supposed differences and see that all wage earners and impoverished people's are inextricably linked for better or worse. The political soul of our nation can be affected by popular will.

Also, I encourage anybody to draw the parallels between the business/government dynamics of the Industrial Revolution(monopolies) with the problems we face now with the predatory business practices of the new faces of monopolies As well as the concerns of advancing technology.

“We've arranged a global civilization in which most crucial elements profoundly depend on science and technology. We have also arranged things so that almost no one understands science and technology. This is a prescription for disaster. We might get away with it for a while, but sooner or later, this combustible mixture of ignorance and power is going to blow up in our faces.” ― Carl Sagan, The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark (in my opinion, the best science communicator who advocated so much for a deeper understanding of reality)

If anybody disagrees, feel free to correct any ignorance in my proposition. Only through discussion can we get a proper perspective on the world and its happenings.

"If we should perish, the ruthlessness of the foe would be only the secondary cause of the disaster. The primary cause would be that the strength of a giant nation was directed by eyes too blind to see all the hazards of the struggle; and the blindness would be induced not by some accident of nature or history but by hatred and vainglory." -Reinhold Niebur, the irony of American History, 1952

Edit: Big labor used to stand tall against big business and big government. (Stealing that from a TED talk)

Edit: I am not advocating for communism or anarchism as ideologies. I am using their philosophies to illustrate the point of equality through education. Knowledge of history gives us perspective.

A bargaining unit member was placed on unpaid administrative leave pending investigation for an ethics complaint made by a client. The investigation took one month, but the company ultimately determined the accusation to be unsubstantiated and allowed them to return to work. The company refused to back pay the employee, and a grievance was filed on the employee’s behalf to obtain their back pay. During the investigation, the employee had found employment elsewhere to make ends meet, and their first day at the new job was on the same day they were allowed to return. Despite being allowed to return, they chose not to come back, because the family of the client’s complaint worked at the same facility and would have to be interacted with often, and they wanted to avoid any awkward situations.

Now that the grievance has made it to the arbitration stage, it seems as though the union is not going to pursue it since the grievant is no longer a bargaining unit member. Now the employee is a month behind on pay and feels as though they’ve been screwed. Does the union still have to represent a former bargaining unit member? Is this common? Is the union putting itself at risk for a ULP charge?

I work doing payroll for union employees. That is to say, the employees I oversee wages for are union, but my role 'Payroll Clerk' is not. There has been some talk of admin positions including mine voting on unionizing, however my supervisor told me that if we vote to unionize then we cannot do payroll for union employee's (something like "union employees cannot oversee wages for other union employees"). I would like to unionize, but I do not wish to change roles - I'm happy where I'm at. Is there any truth to this idea? Or is this just company anti-union nonsense? Any advice is appreciated!

Edit for info: I work in Kansas for a private company that handles package distribution. My role is Payroll Clerk (Part-Time).

May 5th: 1886 Bay View Massacre

On this day in labor history, the Bay View Massacre occurred in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1886. In May, a coalition of laborers, primarily comprised of Polish immigrants, mobilized to advocate for the implementation of an eight-hour workday. Strikers had effectively closed all businesses in the city except for the Milwaukee Iron Company rolling mill in Bay View. Organizing at St. Stanislaus Catholic Church on May 5th, over 1,500 workers, including their wives and children, marched on the mill. National Guardsmen were ordered to fire upon the strikers. Seven died, including a thirteen-year-old boy, marking the bloodiest labor action in Wisconsin’s history. This event is often overshadowed by the Haymarket affair, which took place a day earlier. Sources in comments.

I have an opportunity to work similar jobs with both but I don’t know how to compare them with each other if someone here has experience

Edit: I thought I should give detail about the jobs they're with CP and the other with CN. It's the one where we drive automobiles that are sent in from the plants and we off load them to get shipped out to dealerships. Hope this helps. The entry is like $28 CAD.

Shout-out to our IAFF Local I-66 brothers and sisters. We stand strong with you! We know this is more than just a lockout. It is a message being sent by Boeing leadership to our IAM and SPEEA brothers and sisters who will be negotiating their own contracts very soon.

Anyone know where I can find out something like an average number of grievances filed per 100 workers per month at grocery stores? Or if that's too specific, for workplaces in general?

Our shop has like 160 open grievances accumulated over about 2 years. TBH I'm surprised this in itself isn't grounds for considering taking the employer to arbitration or something. This is a grocery store in Vermont with about 170 staff and 22 managers.

Labor Week is back with a new format (spoiler alert - it's shorter!) In this episode I talk about where I've been, The Network at Labor Notes, unions involved with college occupations, the UAW's Daimler victory and more at

https://laborweek.podbean.com/e/labor-week-for-may-4th-2024/

May 4th: 1886 Haymarket Affair

On this day in labor history, the Haymarket affair occurred in Chicago, Illinois in 1886. On May 3rd, workers gathered outside of the McCormick Harvesting Machine Company on the Westside of Chicago. While protesting for an eight-hour workday, violence broke out, leaving several injured and one dead. The following day, anarchist labor leaders organized a peaceful demonstration in Haymarket Square to protest police brutality. As the crowd dispersed, police arrived. A bomb was thrown by an unknown individual, causing police to fire indiscriminately. Approximately four workers died, while seven police officers were killed, and numerous others injured. In the aftermath, hysteria swept through the nation, with organized labor and immigrants becoming lightning rods for outrage. Eight anarchists were brought up on murder charges; however, many were not even present at Haymarket Square. Four of the eight were hung with another committing suicide. The event contributed directly to the fall of the Knights of Labor, the most successful union at the time, as they were seen as complicit in the violence, even without proof. This led to the growth of the more conservative American Federation of Labor. The calamity inspired workers throughout the world and led to the establishment of International Workers’ Day in many countries. Sources in comments.

Hello!

I decided to create an account to get some desperately needed help/advice. I’m an organizer for a union, and my boss's idea of organizing is telling us to go to random stores. These are stores that never reached out to us, but he thinks/feels these stores would be a good fit to organizer and join our local.

I’m getting a bit frustrated at this approach because I don’t understand how it’s supposed to work (I’m newer). Any advice will be appreciated. I recommended organizing a botanical garden with a lead, and his response was, “They may be too small to organize.”

For anyone who has done organizing successfully like this any tips would be appreciated.

May 3rd: 2006 University of Miami Justice for Janitors campaign ends

On this day in labor history, a nine-week strike in 2006 led by custodial workers at the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida came to end. Also known as the University of Miami Justice for Janitors campaign, the labor action challenged the janitorial services corporation UNICOO, seeking better health care, a living wage, and improved working conditions. The Service Employees International Union began organizing efforts in 2005. The strike began in February of 2006 on Ash Wednesday with the support of local clergy. This date was chosen specifically for its symbolism and relation to Lenten renunciation. Many students and faculty, as well as religious figures, supported the workers. During the strike, there were numerous acts of civil disobedience. For example, a human chain across US Highway 1 was erected and subsequently broken by police. Another instance saw students, along with a reverend, occupy one of the university buildings. Most notably, a series of hunger strikes in April were conducted in an attempt to reach an agreement. Such media attention facilitated the new contract for the custodial workers and a vote for unionization via the card check system. Unionization was achieved, with the new contract improving workers’ conditions. Sources in comments.

Hello, I’m trying to look up in our CBA for our union that a junior employee can’t have more hours in a senior employee for seniority Most CBA are the same. I’m just trying to look at what section it would be in. Thank you.

Virginia

Public (Local)

Education

I'm in an educators union and have recently been recommended for non-renewal of contact by my new principle. HR called me on accident to discuss my principle's intent to recommend the non- renewal of my contract. When they find out my principle hadn't discussed or informed me of that, the ended the call quickly.

The next workday I got a call from the front desk asking if I could meet my assistant principle of instruction (the person that tracks grades/lessons/teaching. When I got to the conference room, the principle was there too and handed me a paper telling me that I was not being recommended for renewal and bullet pointing 11 reasons. They asked if I had any questions and my first one was, "Should I have a union representative for this meeting?"

They said that HR told them that I couldn't have the building rep present because they were also a school employee, nor could the union president be there because they were also a union employee. At the end of the long meeting (took most of my planning period) I asked "This seems like I should have had a union rep for." My principle immediately said that I could have a union rep, it just couldn't be a school district employee too.

They did the unscheduled, no-explanation meeting thing again after I talked to the union president and sent an email detailing what happened in the first ambush meeting, counter-arguing the eleven reasons provided for non-renewal, and requesting a meeting with the superintendent as allowed by my states laws.

This time it was my API, the principle, and HR. This time I asked if I should have a union rep and the HR person said no, that I didn't have to answer or decide anything. I could just take notes and listen. She then proceeded to ask me dozens of questions which, most of the time, I responded "I'm just here to listen and take notes." HR has already requested a meeting and I told them I was scheduling availability with my union rep, when they ambushed me with this meeting

The thing is, I didn't technically ask for a union rep in either of these cases. I'm new to unions and employer anti-union actions. Everywhere else I've worked management has been really good.

I've been reading Dept of Labor stuff about unions, employer obligations, etc and the way its weirded I can't tell if any of it applies here. Because I'm in a probationary teacher (first 3 years at the school) the district doesn't even need a reason not to renew my contract, so pushing back probably won't get me anything. It just feels so fucking wrong.