Anyone else notice?

[TrystInn]

We're missing a lot of the story:

First off, WI is not in that much financial trouble. The Comptroller has been calling for people to calm down. In fact, WI was in the black until the Republican administration pushed through all their corporate tax loopholes and pet projects. Because of poor management, WI is in the hole but not dangerously so. Unions built this country and continue to take care of our children, infirm and elderly. Union members are not the devil!

This whole ridiculousness IS over ending collective bargaining rights for public sector employees. Koch is doing the bidding of his millionaire backers who want to bust up the unions so they can get richer: http://motherjones.com/mojo/2011/02/wisconsin-scott-walker-koch-brothers

Oh, and the Democratic politicians returned after the people had a chance to exercise their Right To Peaceable Assembly. Governor Koch refused to meet with them as he was "too busy".

 

[Royd]

Unions built this country and continue to take care of our children, infirm and elderly. Union members are not the devil!

Unions' main goal is to take care of unions, and those at the top, only want more members, because it makes their pockets fatter.....Kudos, for 8 hr. days, and time and a half pay. Here's the irony about that. Union workers don't mind slowing down the work, during the eight hour day, so that they can work an extra 4-6 hrs. drawing overtime.....I thought that they'd be so tired, after that honest day's work, they would need to go home and get a good night's sleep.

Try showing up on a union job, and actually putting in an honest 8 hours, where you are stepping lively, and making good progress....You will, immediately, be told to slow down, or that you are working too hard and fast.
Honestly, and I've been around a while, every job I've been on, where there are some union workers, they all walk like they accidentally stepped into some contact cement, on the way to work.

Sluggard is the word, which comes to mind.​

 

[mom'sfolly]

Having worked in both union jobs and non union, I find that statement to be untrue.

I also wonder at the statement that firefighters and police are considered a "critical service" and teachers are not. Would you like to live in a society where only the rich were educated? Do the police and firefighters have no deadwood to get rid of?

 

[seedcorn]

People want the benefiits of being union, they just don't want to pay union dues. We all want the cheapest labor that is the best so since unions make the consumer pay up, they are bad....Are there bad union leaders, of course. Without unions, the worker will get run over by government, corporations, etc.

 

[chickened]

You are assuming that only government schools are the only place to get an education, if that were so then teaching would be a critical service. How long has the government been providing education? One would think they would have it right by now. Every time money is diverted to pensions and healthcare it takes from the classroom. Did you know that Wisconsin teachers healthcare covers Viagra? I agree firefighting is a racket at taxpayers expense, good cops earn every penny they get and IMO they are severely under payed. I am not sure that we don't already live in that society, just because someone has an education does not mean they are at a disadvantage, I know people with engineering degrees that cannot hold a job because they cannot get along with anyone and when someone like that gets hired in the public sector unions say you cannot fire him. The wealthiest man I know personally is worth 400 million and was an orphan from Poland started out selling ties from a suitcase in California.

mom'sfolly :

Having worked in both union jobs and non union, I find that statement to be untrue.

I also wonder at the statement that firefighters and police are considered a "critical service" and teachers are not. Would you like to live in a society where only the rich were educated? Do the police and firefighters have no deadwood to get rid of?​

 

[chickened]

All one has to do is look to the auto workers uinion and bailouts. Putting a wheel on a car is not worth 70.00 an hour which is what it costs auto companies to make cars for labor costs. Even the city of Detroit can be a poster child for Government/Union handouts(PBS Death of a City).
Quote:

 

[I have WHAT in my yard?]

This thread has me in tears.

What a sad freaking state of affairs we are in when we have gotten to the point where instead of fighting for all men being created equal bringing all of us up - we fight to make everyone into serfs of the corporatocracy. There are problems in many areas, but we are all losing here folks.

Currently the income gap in the US is actually worse than it is in Egypt. And still we fight each other.

 

[dela1991]

Quote:
Unions' main goal is to take care of unions, and those at the top, only want more members, because it makes their pockets fatter.....Kudos, for 8 hr. days, and time and a half pay. Here's the irony about that. Union workers don't mind slowing down the work, during the eight hour day, so that they can work an extra 4-6 hrs. drawing overtime.....I thought that they'd be so tired, after that honest day's work, they would need to go home and get a good night's sleep.

Try showing up on a union job, and actually putting in an honest 8 hours, where you are stepping lively, and making good progress....You will, immediately, be told to slow down, or that you are working too hard and fast.
Honestly, and I've been around a while, every job I've been on, where there are some union workers, they all walk like they accidentally stepped into some contact cement, on the way to work.

Sluggard is the word, which comes to mind.

I'm not sure where you have worked in the past but in my 23 years of being a member of The Communication Workers of America, I have never been told by the union to slow down. Our union stresses the importance of doing a good job and doing it safely. My husband was an Air Traffic Controller for 26 years and is a member of The National Air Traffic
Controllers Association. Would you be flying if you thought that your life was in the hands of a "sluggard"?

 

[Lostbody]

Quote:
From what I've heard on the radio, the Dem. lawmakers who fled the state were not arguing at all with the proposal to change employee contributions to pensions and reduce pay (which they already did by 3% a year ago), but rather wanted to make time for everyone to look at the other "union-busting" language in the bill. I guess some will call it a stunt, but I think that is part of their job - giving the public time to respond.

I have WHAT in my yard? :

This thread has me in tears.

Ditto.​

 

[Amyable]

My great-uncle told this story a few years ago:
He worked for John Deere (unionized) for many years. Very good wages and benefits. Some new young fellows came in and were very industrious workers. The more senior workers told them to 'stop working so hard, you're making us look bad'.

I've worked for many companies over the years and was never taken advantage of or mistreated (unless working for your folks is considered cruel and unusual.

) I have never belonged to a union. I don't think union membership should be mandatory to work in any company or industry. Let people make their own choice.