I just found out the union I worked hard in convincing my coworkers to vote in favor of just betrayed all of us. Our rep knew about mass layoffs a week in advance and told nobody. I figured the employer would lie. But this betrayal fucking hurts man. I put my neck out for this union and worked hard to get a near unanimous victory.

I guess the first red flag was the director of my local talking about how he and his family enjoyed his vacation home in Mexico last year when discussing negotiations for a contract.

And it was a dogshit contract. Almost no concessions from the employer. "The first raise is just to pay for the dues, we can always get more on the next round of negotiations" I was told. This is how resentment for unions and apathy breeds. I live in an area with extremely high unemployment and awful paying jobs, and every one of my coworkers will have severe difficulty finding a job with similar pay. A week could have bought a lot of us more time to prepare.

And now we're supposed to trust that the union is negotiating our severance in best our interest. I'm not a betting man, but I'd put money on this union taking a cut of our severance. Granted, I've never even had a severance. But if there's one thing I've learned about America is that you should never underesterminate disappointment and the greed of the middleman.

Thanks for the 25 cent raise and now allowing our employer to sack us on FUCKING APRIL FOOLS DAY WHEN YOU KNEW ABOUT IT A WEEK BEFORE. Can't trust any god damn institution in this country. Fuck UFCW

P.S. is there no dedicated labor community on this site? Dafuq?

  • RedArmor [he/him]
    ·
    4 years ago

    UFCW contracts have no strike clauses. Not “allowed” to do anything

    • RNAi [he/him]
      ·
      4 years ago

      Oh no, we aren't allowed to break the law, it's written here in the law's law. Too bad.

    • aaro [they/them, she/her]
      ·
      4 years ago

      Please explain this to me; I'm trying to understand labor law better. If your union rep negotiates a contract, and it includes a no-strike clause, is it then illegal for the workers to collectively act by not coming to work for a day? Who's breaking the law there - every single worker at the same time? Or does it just invalidate the union contract and allow the boss to retract any benefits/wages/other things the contract provides for?

      Can someone recommend a book or something on this?

      • triangle [none/use name]
        ·
        4 years ago

        The workers are breaking the law by striking, they can be forced back to work and if they dont they could be fined or jailed.

        Ultimately, the workers hold the power though when they're united, even if the contract sucks or leadership is a bunch of class collaborator traitors. If enough members go on wildcat strike, the no-strike clause becomes pointless and often strike pay is paid out at the end of the action and no member faces jail time.

        I know in the 80s a nurses union in canada went on a wildcat strike and their members went to the police en masse and asked to be jailed. They were turned away and ultimately won the dispute, because if your workers are locked up they arent available for work.

        • Thordros [he/him, comrade/them]
          ·
          4 years ago

          I know in the 80s a nurses union in canada went on a wildcat strike and their members went to the police en masse and asked to be jailed. They were turned away and ultimately won the dispute, because if your workers are locked up they arent available for work.

          For the uninitiated: that was the 1988 United Nurses of Alberta strike. It happened right out my back door when I was a young fella staying in Edmonton with my grandparents, across the street from the Misericordia Hospital. That cold-ass winter is seared into my brain for all time.