On Tue, 20 Jan 2004 08:01:04 +0000, Weathered Rose wrote:

Ah...wow, what great boating convo! You say Americans are greedy, well, sir,
unfortuantely Unions contrubute to the "Higher wadges, lower production" that
is creating a blight on the real working person's job. Not only have I seen
what the "fine unions have done" I've seen what they don't do. They
contribute to the demoralization of the working class by making people lazy in
their positions. I've worked with exunion guys that want it all handed to
them, and I'm sorry, I can't see what a bennfit you are to us.

Read the history of unions, then get back to me.

Here's a joke for you.

How do you make a Union man work?
Give him 50.00 and tell him to stand over there.

Slogan for the Electricians Union: "Many hands make light work"

(Of course, in Real Life, there would be the Electrician's Union person, the
Warehouse Union person (to provide the light bulb), the Driver-Helper's Union
(to hold the ladder), the Operators Union (to operate the switch), and so on...)

I went back to university for my Engineering degree so I wouldn't have to work
in an Union. You think unions are powerful in the US, try BC, Canada! I'll agree
with most of what you said and add this: Unions are responsible for the "Us and
Them" attitude in most workplaces that is largely responsible for low morale,
blame, animosity between workers and management, strikes/lockouts, unbelievably
complex and expensive contract negotiations, and so on.

I worked for 4 years in a non-union shop, and MAN what a difference! No
animosity between workers and management, no "you can't do that because it's not
your job", no arguing over who's "jurisdiction" some piece of equipment is, no
strikes/lockouts, and so on. You worked your hrs and got paid (WELL, I might
add!). Benefits were just as good as in the Union shop, but with more choice
(for instance, you could choose to contribute to the company retirement fund, or
run your own). And I think most important of all: you got REWARDED for "going
that extra mile", working overtime, getting that job done on time, etc.

Lloyd