Michigan pushes right-to-work measure(24th state in the nation to adopt R-T-W)

[RickN]

RickN, you must have had some kind of horrible personal experience with a union or unions.

Does a friend beat almost to death by union thugs count?

 

[TedKennedy]

When the union started to come into our plant in '94, the company started a misinformation campaign like none other. When that wasn't working, they started threatening employees. We got the union anyway, and life was seriously better. I only have that experience to draw from, but I can say without hesitation, that it's better to be able to address your boss with a problem having a written set of rules you BOTH have to follow, than to have production floor dictators. I have yet to understand how a CEO can get a huge bonus as the company claims they have to lay off workers, and it's the unions fault. Who was the CEO that signed the contract? If he agreed to terms that would financially hurt the company why isn't HE accaountable, not just the union?

 

[mons meg]

That RTW even got on the radar in Michigan is huge. It may represent a slow return to economic reality for them.

Also, public sector unions (which are about the only ones left standing these days compared to their heyday) are all RTW by nature, and they seem to thrive (at the expense of the taxpayer).

Bottom line, if ye love liberty, I don't see how you can not support RTW.

 

[TedKennedy]

Liberty for sure! Yet it's one issue out of many that need to be addressed - prior to the decline of industry in the U.S. (go ahead, blame the unions) we had laws that protected Americans from competing against 3rd world countries. Today companies have to compete with China, India, Mexico..etc.....because these countries can sell their products here without tariff. So U.S. Widget Co. has to compete with the world price of labor, and bear the cost of the EPA, and higher prices for chemicals, etc..

Until we again have laws that protect American industries (and jobs, wages) wages and benefits will decline. The unions are trying to keep the previous wage structures as long as they can. It won't work.

This is one of the biggest differences in neocon thinking vs traditional conservative thinking. Look at the platforms of conservatives in the 40's-60's, certainly not friends of unions, but a bi-product of their policies were strong industries that could support higher American wages.

 

[twoguns?]

First a little background, so folks know where I'm coming from. I started as an electrical apprentice in 1983. I've worked in residential, commercial and industrial. I have an Electrical Masters License from Texas and an Electrical Contractors License in Oklahoma. I had my own contracting company for 11 years. Most emphasis since 1999 has been heavy industrial, oil & gas, hazardous classified areas, etc. I've held positions of superintendent, project manager, inspector, etc. I was Operations Mgr for an electrical contractor in the OKC area for 2-1/2 yrs, (growing from 22 FT employees to over 150), leaving that position the end of Sept and returned to inspecting.

I'm currently one of about 70 inspectors on a refinery job near Chicago, with about 10,000 craft workers on the project. All craft workers are union - boilermakers, pipe fitters, welders, mill wrights, electricians, instrumentation tech, laborers, etc. This is the first project I have been on with union labor. I have never been for or against unions, I just have never been around them. I've always kept an open mind about them.

In my work history, this 'recession' or what have you with the economy, has never impacted me. I've had all the work and hours I could stand. I am making a BUNCH of money right now and am not complaining at all. I have noticed though, this is the slowest, laziest bunch of workers I have ever seen in my life. I've worked mostly in Texas and Oklahoma, but also in Wyoming, Colorado, Nebraska and Pennsylvania. Nowhere I have ever been was like this. It is amazing how long it takes to get anything done. There is SO MUCH time wasted in a day - and night - I'm working the night shift right now (that's why this post comes at this time). If this is what unions are about, I'm glad I've never been around them. Based on what I have seen during the 6 weeks I've been here, a good crew from TX and/or OK would definitely work circles around these folks.

So , let me get this staight .
Your commenting on wasting time as you peruse the gun forum, having enough time to post even. While Your at Work?
Congrats on the resume , but you just lost all creditability with me.
If you dont like what the workers are doing , quit posting on a gun forum and gather the bosses.
Upper management , Geesh. How do they ever expect the jobs to get done? Do them themselves? YEA Right

 

[Vamoose]

Does a friend beat almost to death by union thugs count?

That would get my attention.

 

[JesseR]

So , let me get this staight .
Your commenting on wasting time as you peruse the gun forum, having enough time to post even. While Your at Work?
Congrats on the resume , but you just lost all creditability with me.

You are either retired or taking a day off because you are doing the same. Please say you are not a union working sitting around surfing the net? Say it aint so!

For you information, I'm self-employed and only answer to the boss... ME!

 

[Vamoose]

Nowhere I have ever been was like this. It is amazing how long it takes to get anything done. There is SO MUCH time wasted in a day - and night - I'm working the night shift right now (that's why this post comes at this time). If this is what unions are about, I'm glad I've never been around them. Based on what I have seen during the 6 weeks I've been here, a good crew from TX and/or OK would definitely work circles around these folks.

I bet you don't think twice about cashing those paychecks though.

Stay safe Biker.

 

[JesseR]

I bet you don't think twice about cashing those paychecks though.

Stay safe Biker.

Are you suggesting the Union is to thank for his check? I thought the fact he is providing a service, he gets paid. Isn't the saying a days work for a days pay? Are only union workers suppose to get paid?

 

[Lone Wolf '49]

I've worked as a project control scheduler for a very large engineering company and part of that job is to schedule construction times for the process plants. Whenever you have labor unions involved, the cost and time to build is exponentially more than non-union. You must add an efficiency factor to account for the lost productivity and extra cost. That factor could be high as 90% based on geographics. These are real numbers. It not only takes almost twice as many man-hours in some areas it cost substantially more per hour to do it.

Thank you, and most have no idea of the real work world.