I just get tired of people that get jobs doing inane things (like making sure people don't get caught inside the doors on the PATH) requesting living wage for a full 5-heads family.
I mean give them compensation for what they're worth, but for God's sake, you don't even drive the thing!
What's your problem with "the current state of unions?" Sure they're detrimental in some cases, but it would be a scary world for the worker without them. No, I do not think that organized labor has served its purpose and is no longer needed - those with power will constantly wittle away at workers who fail to defend themselves.
It's shit that NYC has to go without mass transit for the time being, but I think it's even greater horseshit that it's illegal for any worker to strike and that they're being fined ontop of it.
"What's your problem with the current state of Unions?"
Yes, it's a dark day when the man wins. That doesn't mean you should automatically side with the proletariat, either. First of all, the NYC transportation unions strike/threaten strike once every so many months. This is not some pent up thing - rather a planned event.
It probably would be better if Unions negotiated rather than just stonewalled - as is their ultimate and only strategy. It's like playing ball as a kid, and that one asshole, Joey, kept threatening to take his ball and bat home if we didn't let him be pitcher. He sucked as pitcher, didn't he?
It is illegal to strike in certain instances because it creates economical gaps that can drastically affect local and world economy. PATH and Metro are not run by the NYC government, but they are not allowed to bring the New York economy crashing down because they decide it is their time to strike. It's like a security union refusing to open the doors to office buildings in NYC.
I haven't seen the 24% figure anywhere (I've been digging for their actual demands), but if that's true it's pretty ludicrous. Yes, I understand the bit about civil servants being able to vote in new bosses, but it's not always practical when the damage is done to your paycheck today and has to be reversed somewhere down the line. A lot of the transit employees are payed reasonably, but it's nothing to masturbate to the thought of in NYC. I'm sure as hell not going savor the idea of driving a bus in that traffic.
I disagree with your notion of what a union does - I think in a number of cases you are right, but labor movements have always been notoriously maligned. I think that unions still have the capability to be immensely beneficial to workers, especially in competetive fields (IT + tech) that are not currently organized.
OH! And the figure is about $22 million a day, I believe the estimated total cost is up to $400 million. Not chump change by any means, but a gaping difference indeed.
They actually did attempt to negotiate - the deadline passed so they carried on with the strike. There is no question that this strike is major bad news for NYC, but workers should be allowed to organize and do as they please at even at the detriment of the whole. AJ's comment on the state of unions today stuck out to me because of a prevalent belief these days that organized labor is unnecessary in post-industrialized America. Certainly there are many times when unions make unreasonable demands and even harm their employers (see General Motors) but I'll take the costs associated with unions over the evident risks of not having them
( ... )
The counter offer made by the MTA was 9% raise over 10 years, 1% paid for health care, and maintain the pension age at 55. That's above antional averages and city averages. I'll dig up a source later.
Also, I don't disagree that unions can be beneficial, my stance is that most of them today are engaging in extortion rather than fighting for equality.
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I mean give them compensation for what they're worth, but for God's sake, you don't even drive the thing!
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It's shit that NYC has to go without mass transit for the time being, but I think it's even greater horseshit that it's illegal for any worker to strike and that they're being fined ontop of it.
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Yes, it's a dark day when the man wins. That doesn't mean you should automatically side with the proletariat, either. First of all, the NYC transportation unions strike/threaten strike once every so many months. This is not some pent up thing - rather a planned event.
It probably would be better if Unions negotiated rather than just stonewalled - as is their ultimate and only strategy. It's like playing ball as a kid, and that one asshole, Joey, kept threatening to take his ball and bat home if we didn't let him be pitcher. He sucked as pitcher, didn't he?
It is illegal to strike in certain instances because it creates economical gaps that can drastically affect local and world economy. PATH and Metro are not run by the NYC government, but they are not allowed to bring the New York economy crashing down because they decide it is their time to strike. It's like a security union refusing to open the doors to office buildings in NYC.
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I disagree with your notion of what a union does - I think in a number of cases you are right, but labor movements have always been notoriously maligned. I think that unions still have the capability to be immensely beneficial to workers, especially in competetive fields (IT + tech) that are not currently organized.
OH! And the figure is about $22 million a day, I believe the estimated total cost is up to $400 million. Not chump change by any means, but a gaping difference indeed.
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