Читать книгу Prison Puzzle Pieces 3 - Dave Basham - Страница 58

Once before, I had been in a union. I had to join it because I was an engineer in a bakery. This union was crap. We paid dues and received nothing in return. When the plant closed down, the way we found out was by an old timer that had started at 46½ cents per hour. He found a crumpled up memo in an office waste basket.

During academy, a union guy came in giving us the pitch of how great the union was and how much it did for us. This guy was a pushy jerk. By him coming in and trying to ram this thing down our throats, most of us were turned off. He flat out told us that we better vote for Gore for president. What a fool, yes both this union guy and Gore. Nobody tells me how to vote much less to vote for a liar. Granted most of the politicians are probably liars, but most are not dumb enough to get caught at it and then deny it when everything is taped in this day and age.

The only reason I joined the union was that even if I didn’t, I would still have to pay the same amount. It only seemed logical that if I had to pay the same, I may as well get potential representation and protection along with it.

It’s not that I’m anti union. I am just anti crap unions. This union was another crap union. However, in this place, even a crap union seemed to be a necessity.

During the time I worked at the prison, we lost more than we gained. When I left, the book stating the agreement between Unit 208 and the State of Minnesota was a quarter of an inch thick. When I started the book was about ¾ inch thick.

The original agreement, when I started, I saw as ridiculous. It should’ve been trimmed back. Before my time, the union had succeeded in getting a lot of benefits for those working here. The problem was that they got more approved than was realistic for an employer to bear.

A good agreement should work well for both sides. The employer must remain solvent. Just because it is a state run entity doesn’t mean you can give away the farm. On the contrary, every penny should be thought of as tax payer money. Don’t spend what you don’t have to spend, but spend what is necessary to get the job done right. Don’t waste one cent. It is not your money to waste.

I don’t know what all was in the contract when I started and I have no idea what all was in the contract when I left. It just seemed like the contract when I started contained most everything except someone to follow us into the toilet and wipe our ass when we were done. Alright, that may be a bit of a stretch, but employees and employers have to be realistic on wants verses needs and what is deserved for the job being performed and the risks

Without the union, I could see how the bosses would do whatever they wanted. Even with the union they tried and succeeded getting rid of some good people. It seemed like the union was only able to protect those that shouldn’t have been protected.