Support NeoGAF

[GeekyDad]

So, I work for a unionized company, for which I'm thankful. Considering just the past year I've had and how they've acted on my behalf, I feel I've gotten my money's worth.

A new contract is now up for a vote this next month. Very short window to vote -- four hours on a particular day. Fine. The proposed contract is out for unionized employees to read. Sadly, I doubt most folks will read through the entire document, as it gets pretty lengthy when it comes to the "fine print." But, long story short, it has a lot of great features for new hires. That's great -- I'm all for it. The starting wage will be more than double what the minimum wage is, which is what most folks were hiring in at.

However...

The beginning of the union contract offers a letter from the union president who touts this to be the greatest financial offering from the company he/she/they have seen in their 47 years with the union.

<my senses automatically perk up with suspicion>

So, I wait until my next full day off so I can take the time to read through the entire proposed contract thoroughly.

Whew...

Keep in mind, this is just for our territory (a particular region of the Southeast U.S.). The $300 million investment from the company will actually come out of senior employees' paychecks via annual increases in all of our other expenses, most significantly our health care. The contract will last four years, and our weekly cost, which again, will increase every year, add up in ways that will probably well exceed the $300 million the company will pay out.

Ugh... the fucking nonsense.

tldr: Getting bent over again by the man.

 

[dr_octagon]

have you considered kidnapping?

 

[godhandiscen]

Vote for your interests OP. Your health care coverage is particularly important as you age.

If the company cannot attract new hires due to substandard benefits, they will raise the starting wage in other ways.

 

[poppabk]

So err how is this a minimum wage rant?

 

[GeekyDad]

So err how is this a minimum wage rant?

You know what, that is my fault for not being more clear in the actual OP. Sorry.

The idea is that the company, I suspect, wants to appear as being a progress company, raising the minimum wage on their own without the government actually passing it into law. But vested employees are the ones actually paying for that minimum-wage increase.

 

[6502]

Unions are great. You get a vote where most people have to eat shit. And if you are unhappy you can organise and stand against incumbents to have a go yourself. It's the closest thing to democracy (at least at shop floor level) working people will ever get.

If this is the best deal they can get and your colleagues are not ready to walk out then getting annoyed won't help. Just make sure you use your vote.

 

[DeafTourette]

Wouldn't the new workers ALSO pay into it with the increases? Over time, if the OG workers start leaving and the newer workers become the senior workers, wouldn't they then have to pay into the increases if they don't initially?

 

[GeekyDad]

Wouldn't the new workers ALSO pay into it with the increases? Over time, if the OG workers start leaving and the newer workers become the senior workers, wouldn't they then have to pay into the increases if they don't initially?

Yeah, they'd have to pay whatever the current benefit rates are. However, they're also raising the minimum number of hours worked each week in order to be eligible for most benefits, even the lowest tier heath benefits. And getting full time is a very difficult thing. You have to first work up seniority, then roll hours on newer co-workers. Generally speaking, it's an unspoken but very clear standing order that heads aren't to schedule in such a way as to allow folks to become full time, which automatically occurs if they are scheduled full time for past eight weeks.

 

[EverydayBeast]

Higher pay is nice obviously companies should know paying your employees more makes them better.

 

[DeafTourette]

Higher pay is nice obviously companies should know paying your employees more makes them better.

A lot of them cater to their shareholders more than the people who actually make their company possible.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

How is the company at fault with shitty terms?

Isn't the the union president supposed to work out terms with union members and then negotiate with management on terms to vote for?

As for money swapping hands from senior's pay cheques to help pay for new hires, the company only has so much money to pitch themselves. Every company's finance dept tries to live with a certain SG&A band of let's say 13-15% (made up numbers).

If people want more wages and perks, the company has to either grow net sales or increase the % or both.

If your company is taking a hit on senior members benefits to cover it, it means you either are working at a crappy company with bad financials or your union rep negotiated bad terms, where the focus was new hires than vets, where the focus was on the greater good.

If you worked at a non-unionized company, they dont gimp veteran compensation/benefits to pay for new hires.

 

[GeekyDad]

How is the company at fault with shitty terms?

I wasn't blaming anyone (I don't think -- let me re-read the OP). No, I don't think so... I just think the whole thing is shitty.

 

[AJUMP23]

What is your union presidents compensation?

<- not a fan of the union.

 

[GeekyDad]

What is your union presidents compensation?

<- not a fan of the union.

My guess is it's significantly more than mine.

 

[6502]

How is the company at fault with shitty terms?

Isn't the the union president supposed to work out terms with union members and then negotiate with management on terms to vote for?

As for money swapping hands from senior's pay cheques to help pay for new hires, the company only has so much money to pitch themselves. Every company's finance dept tries to live with a certain SG&A band of let's say 13-15% (made up numbers).

If people want more wages and perks, the company has to either grow net sales or increase the % or both.

If your company is taking a hit on senior members benefits to cover it, it means you either are working at a crappy company with bad financials or your union rep negotiated bad terms, where the focus was new hires than vets, where the focus was on the greater good.

If you worked at a non-unionized company, they dont gimp veteran compensation/benefits to pay for new hires.

Sound like an apology for greedy companies trying to blame everyone else. Unions improve conditions - they don't argue down terms that businesses are desperate to give employees, pretending otherwise is disingenuous.

There can be focus on altering the share, but that is why you have a vote. Either existing people want it or they don't - future highers won't be voting.

Non unionised markets left to fester lead to extremely rich companies introducing zero hour contracts, no sick pay, no holidays, no health and safety, no dignity and frankly exploitation. We have seen it since 2008 and for all of history.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

Non unionised markets left to fester lead to extremely rich companies introducing zero hour contracts, no sick pay, no holidays, no health and safety, no dignity and frankly exploitation. We have seen it since 2008 and for all of history.

I've never been part of a union. Just an office guy.

Pay goes up every year ~3%. Annual bonus ~15-20%. Profit sharing bonus ~5%. Paid sick and holiday pay. Benefits are fine. Company cell phone. Zero union dues.

Get fired, and the standard severance pay is one month per year of service.

New FT hires are junior analysts (the lowest office job) at about $50-60k per year. Summer student coop interns $22/hr. All they did was do some basic excel sheets and powerpoint slides to help out the dept they worked in. Basically an office gopher. After 3 months are done they go back to university.

Sounds good to me.

 

[Pagusas]

I've never been part of a union. Just an office guy.

Pay goes up every year ~3%. Annual bonus ~15-20%. Profit sharing bonus ~5%. Paid sick and holiday pay. Benefits are fine. Company cell phone. Zero union dues.

Get fired, and the standard severance pay is one month per year of service.

New FT hires are junior analysts (the lowest office job) at about $50-60k per year. Summer student coop interns $22/hr. All they did was do some basic excel sheets and powerpoint slides to help out the dept they worked in. Basically an office gopher. After 3 months are done they go back to university.

Sounds good to me.

Same experience here... same experience in every corporate non-unionized job I've had in my 20 years working. I think it's important to recognize though white collar vs blue collar workers and people with special skills and talents vs people who have none.

Basically, if you have a special talent thats worth something to a company, you are treated like platinum and given all the benefits. Unions actually hurt people like us, my career took off because I could negotiate the pay for my skills myself, and knew how to stand up for myself and had a market hungry for what I offered. Forcing me into a union would for my wage and benefits down.

 

[StreetsofBeige]

Same experience here... same experience in every corporate non-unionized job I've had in my 20 years working. I think it's important to recognize though white collar vs blue collar workers and people with special skills and talents vs people who have none.

Basically, if you have a special talent thats worth something to a company, you are treated like platinum and given all the benefits. Unions actually hurt people like us, my career took off because I could negotiate the pay for my skills myself, and knew how to stand up for myself and had a market hungry for what I offered. Forcing me into a union would for my wage and benefits down.

Same boat as you. It's been perfectly fine working in an office Ya, some workers and bosses are better than others, but as a whole, probably 95% of people I've ever met or work with are cool. Even the ones who are old school and can barely use a PC are fine to worth with. They are just 20 years behind in tech and dont give a shit because they are probably retiring soon anyway.

Doesnt matter if I was a new grad employee, or now as a senior finance person. Every VP and CEO I've met is chill. One place the VP even invited everyone over for a backyard BBQ and the old geezer cooked the shit himself. So I dont get this "Management are greedy asstards" mentality.

I always find it interesting when you hear union workers always having an axe to grind against management.

That union/management weekly head butting contest must be great to work in. Ive never seen it in office life. At most, the Sale managers are getting anxious about hitting their numbers, but thats as far as it goes. Everyone works together for a common good - business execution - and no newbies, vets or VPs have this me against you mentality.

But hey, if union members and their union boss negotiating terms like it's two people fighting in court then ya, management will treat you like babies. Don't act like that and do your work, and management doesn't rag on you for an extra 50 cents per hour pay bump.

Even better are the closer knit offices where everyone goes to lunch with each other. One of my old jobs was like that (small dept). Once a month we all went to a restaurant near the office an the VP expensed the bill every time. Everyone in the dept (about 20 of us) were invited from the summer student (one hire per summer) to him (the VP).