I never said my employer was screwing me. Evidently your reading comprehension skills are jaded by your pro union bias. That being said, perhaps you need to realize that my "empirical evidence" about the fact you're being screwed by both your union and your employer consists of the threads on the ABF and YRC boards. If you as teamster's want to organize the non-union companies, start by fixing the union itself and your pension, which is sadly the last selling point to potential membership, and a pathetically weak one at that.
So how do you fix the union? Start by firing lazy workers. Productivity and profitability are not four letter words. They are in fact the lifeblood of a company from which your wages and benefits are paid.
Next, eliminate the corruption and graft that are rampant in the union so called leadership.
Lastly, restore union power by getting every member involved. Union meetings should be attended by one and all. Oops, next I'll be asking for voter turnout to become more than 10%.
That's crazy talk!
Very good! Good points I'll concede,..........about membership not getting involved and voter turnouts for elections, both local and national,......AND contractual.
The "lazy worker" crack, though,........is propaganda promoted by every corporate office out there.
Consider:......The Union DOES NOT hire,.......Nor do they Fire,.........the company does both. But, in the meantime,....AS REQUIRED by Federal law,...the Union must represent ALL the employees the company has hired without regard to their "competency".
And,.....sometimes the company hires some....real "doozies". All contracts have new-hire provisions that allow them to fire a new employee , usually within 90 days, without prejudice........Sometimes I think the company ...retains....a few "dolts",...just to give the Union representatives fits........
As a steward for 16 years, I've had to sometimes bite my tongue concerning my own opinion of a fellow employee's work ethic. But,.....as a steward,....I will fight for just about every advantage I can to help you retain your job if you make a mistake. I will not/havenot/never have....lied to help a guy I represented retain his job. And,....yes.....I've had to let a guy "take his lumps",......if he was trying to get away with something.
In a non-Union company,......the employer hires,....fires,.....disciplines,.....lays off,......or promotes,........according to any sort of standards they want,....whether they're fair or not. I know of a Con-Way driver who was fired while eating his lunch in a parking lot. The wife of a judge backed her car underneath his trailer,.........and it became..."politically expedient".....to fire the guy. Read up on the "Employment At Will" rules in your employee handbook. They can literally fire you for parting your hair on the wrong side on Tuesday........Or because you've irritated your dispatcher.......
Companies routinely try to make their non-Union employees feel better about,....non-representation,......by telling them they are "better workers" than the Union guys. Maybe they won't think about the recent health insurance raise that negates the recent pay raise......
But,...if you feel you're the best in the industry,.....have a great work ethic,.....great, safe driver,......Then, you're going to try for the top-of-the-line wages and benefits. It becomes an intelligence test then.....If you understand all the liabilities and pitfalls about performing services in the public domain,....and you want a third-party advocate between you and your employer to protect you and your family,....You go for the Union employer....
If,.....you don't understand these qualifiers,......liabilities,.....provisions of Employment-At-Will,........then you go for an employer who will make you feel good about being "less lazy" than the Union employees........