Not an isolated ideology

It is interesting to note that many unions of late seem to be in a destructive mode. In these tough and uncertain financial times, many of them would rather see the companies that employ them go under and everyone lose their job than accept some cuts and save jobs. Isn't the point of the unions to keep the jobs?

The one I absolutely could not fathom was UAW at the end of the year. The government was willing to give money to keep the automakers afloat, but they wanted concessions across the board. Would UAW? No. Wait a second! If the companies don't get the money and go under, doesn't EVERYONE lose their job? That seems quite the opposite of what unions claim to stand for.

I mention this because our own beloved IAM seems to have a history of self-destructive behavior. Red-circled employees, health care, relations with the employees and company are all things that this union has shown they are not capable of handling. A previous employer of mine had been unionized just before I hired on. The relationships between the union, company, salaried and hourly were about a thousand times better than they are here. While no one side particularly liked the other, they at least respected the other's presence. Maybe after so many years here, the IAM has lost sight of that. When you treat a company as an adversary and do not respect their responsibilities, what do you think the company is going to do? The company is going to have disdain for the union.

I still find it odd that the union claims how much they do to promote workplace safety. Oddly enough, most of the "accidents" that I've seen in my work areas are caused by individuals bypassing the safeguards that are in place. It's that complacency that the union seems to have lately. When you get into a rut, things are overlooked. Perhaps it is time to give the union the boot and, once the dust has settled, bring another that would better represent us. The only other alternative would be to completely remove every "elected" union official and replace them with someone new. However, the nepotism that I've seen would not allow that to happen.

This is not said out of anger, but out of disappointment. The union claims to listen to its members, but when those members express their concerns, the union ignores them. When they can no longer support an organization that does not support them, the union ignores them with a vengence. All the while claiming to represent these employees. Well, which is it, IAM933? Are you listening to those you represent? Or are you still being a childish, slow acting, ignorant machine? You can't have it both ways. That is why this petition is going to be filed. One way or another, the union will listen to those it claims to represent. If they won't listen now, they will listen when those petitions come around.