A Different Rant

Normally, we like to take a look at the things the union has done that are unfair, immoral, and, at times, illegal. It has been brought to my attention that some may read this to mean that I find the company to be the greatest thing since sliced bread. That is far from the truth. The last two years have proven more than anything that this union/company relationship is broken and one step to resolving that is getting the union out of the workplace.

How many of you take pride in your work? How many of your coworkers do? Do they take pride in their work or their union? And does management make these workers do their job effectively, or do they sweep it under the rug? It would appear that many of the supervisors and managers that deal with hourly employees have taken their leadership training from this union.

Most of the hourly management is so poorly equipped to promote their employees to succeed that they reward mediocre performance. What is the incentive going to be to get that lazy substandard employee in your area to do a better, more reliable job? He or she is going to be paid the same regardless. They aren't going to be fired. So what is the motivation? This isn't something that the union can control, but it is a side effect of the union being here. Management has failed in coming up with ways to make every employee as productive as possible. This problem will not suddenly disappear once the union is gone, but the system can begin to be repaired.

Would you reward your kids equally with the same allowance if one of them does all of their chores while the other one does only half of them? No, I didn't think so. So why should grown adults expect that treatment? It's time to cut some of the dead weight.

Management also had a gigantic failure in the way it allowed attitudes to be carried over from the last two contract negotiations. The attitudes have created such a pleasant working environment that several salaried people don't even want to come to work and deal with the union. Not only did the management fail the hourly workers in mending relations, they failed the salaried that work with the hourly. This causes a serious ripple effect. It demotivates workers, making them less productive, and puts a strain on employees.

I don't believe that once this union is gone everything will suddenly be roses and sunshine. That is foolhardy. But with the current set-up we can not even hope to have a better work environment. We can not hope to be treated as a valuable employee instead of a piece of equipment. Without this union, we can work towards bridging the chasm that has been created between employee and employer. That is why I AM NOT 933!