Well Well Well

Here is what I have encountered lately.

The position I will be taking over at the end of the month will be responsible for about 75 people.

Management has offered 24 positions a $1.75 an hour raise, effective the 15th of June. They will ask all 75 people if the want the job and fill the 24 positions by seniority.

There are 2 other areas on the plant that will also get the upgrade in pay.

Here is the kicker, the other 2 areas will not have any extra duties added to their job, whereas the area I will be representing will be required to work in 2 different facilities and learn 2 different jobs that are simular but not exactly the same.

The man in the Union Director job now & I both feel that the extra duties are asking too much of the people. The jobs both work with Pentane(a highly explosive material) and even though they are simular, both have different warning alarms and safety interlocks.

The company offered the extra money to keep people on the job, at the last minute added the extra duties as a way to cut down on overtime. A high ranking union offical, on the executive committee agreed that management could require the employees to work both jobs.

This guy agreed to this in a meeting that only he was present.

Now the current union rep, that leaves office on the 28th of June and myself, who will take over that day, have every worker on the plant, covered by the upgrade, pissed off at us!

The other 2 areas that have no extra duties, want the extra money and have been told by their managers that Dale & I are holding up the pay increase.

The people that we represent are pissed because of the extra duties, they feel will be unsafe. It takes a period of 8 months to a year to train on one job and another 2 years to feel comfortable on.

Any advise?

I should stay out of this one ...

... because I feel it's the 'Unions' that are ruining this country.

Are the Union's doing it?

Are the crooks running the unions doing it?

I have found that there are very few people now days that are for the good of the whole, rather than "what's in it for me?".

ash

IMO the unions have outlived their usefulness. With that being said and my opinion counting for nothing, I can tell you that the majority of the unions are self serving entities that as a general rule do not take care of the worker individually rather the claim is made that they take care of the workers as a whole. How American is it to block able bodied workers from a site unless they pay the dues? Extortion? I fight with unions everyday and they are still very strong and do in fact operate in a self-preservation mode. Years ago I was in a union. When I publicly refused to pay the watchman $800 I ended up not working in my trade through the union for 5 years. My rant is now done.

As for your situation, you have to make the decision with your head and your heart as opposed to your wallet. If the situation is as dangerous as you say, it may be time to stand up for what you feel is right and assume the consequences of your actions will justified by the fact that you can sleep at night knowing you did the right thing.

Myash, I am not a union fan at all but that wasn't the question now was it. IMO you have to fight for what you think is best for those you represent. I think there are rules about managers telling your members thing that aren't true. A friend of mine is magagement in a place that was voting on going union. During the time before the vote managment was barred by law from discussing it with the employees(different sit. maybe different rules). If not get the truth out there and do your best. It sounds like you're between a rock and a hard place. Good Luck!

Jimmy- I didnot read the other responces!!! Arent all these issues negotiable,at contract time??? Does mgmt reserve the right too implement certain changes during an xisting contract???? If so be careful,because come next contract neg past practice can come into play!!!! ???? Then mgmt can and will still be saving $$$ On OT Shift Differential!!! Good Luck JOE!!!

Sounds like yourself and Dale need to hold a special meeting to address the new issue's on the table with the 75 employee's... they cannot have their cake and eat it too?? what are the OSHA standards for this job training on positions? you can fudge it inside the shop until something goes wrong.. then it wont be managements AZZ it will be Yours... Always Remember Safety First!!

Hog

Nobody should feel unsafe at their job.

That being said, IF management has an effective safety program the additional duties should not put workers in danger. On the other hand, if the workers are not able or willing to commit THEMSELVES to working safely it is a different story. An unsafe worker can get hurt in a pillow factory.

Regarding addtional duties for no pay raise........it happens all the time. It is what needs to happen for US companies to begin to become viable in a world market.

First this is a very complex situation

* was the additional duties in alignment with the current contract? If so this wasn't a closed door agreement by the union official but a non arguable right of management to add the duties based on the current contract approved by the union members.... you need to speak with your union attorney and make sure that the adding of the additional duties were contractual legit.

If so then a meeting with all concerned affected union members need to be held and this clearly explained to them.

if this is a violation of the current contract then that needs to be addressed in writing to management and negotiaitions entered into to correct the matter and bring the duties back into alignment.

I do not understand from your explanation how the raises are being held up by you. So no comment there.

With regards to the safety issue that needs to be specifically broken down as to what those issues are and a system or procedure(s) implemented to correct the problem.

This event can go two ways. either you will be condemned or you will rise to the top and seen as a leader....

You can step back look at the issues and make it a win win for everyone... emotional detachment is imperative.

that is my .02 based on my understanding of your narrative

First, let me say I respect everyone's opinion about unions. I will not try to change your opinions.

Now with that said, I would like to say thanks for your opinions and advice.

I am not sure how Dale & I will handle this, I only hope we can get the best for the people we represent.

I'm not sure if I'm following all of this correctly, so don't get offended if I don't make any sense. Here's what I understand (correct me if I'm wrong).

You're being offered a pay increase for a higher level of supervision role.

This role requires more work (still a 40 hour week though right)?

The role is not a salaried position, so you will be paid for the exact amount of time that you put on the job.

I think that sums it up for me. I could be misunderstanding though.

In my opinion, and don't get me wrong:

If you don't want the job don't take it. There are plenty of guys or gals out there that will take the pay raise, the promotion, the schooling that will come with the new role, and the increased future prospect of an even higher management role without complaining. The company is offering a job, and actually "asking" the employees to put in an honest days work.....go figure. What are they thinking?

I think adroomi has laid out a clear picture of the situation. The company has figured out a way of motivating the willing. IMO, some of the folks that go for the new job will be the motivated types they should be promoting to management positions. Those promotions will be based on a willingness to lean more jobs and take on more responsibility. This is direct opposition to promoting by union seniority rules, which always drag things backward.

I was once involved with a union. It was very interesting to study the members, as well as the company and union personnel. It can work if they all understand they are in business together. If not, greed and stupidity will rule the day.

Any one check GM’s stock lately?

Good luck myash, you are in a tough situation. Plant your feet and make a stand. Think if all this unwanted stress is worth the extra $$$$. In the end it could be.

I won't give my opinions on unions, they're irrelevant.

I really have no advise to give, but know that you will make the right descisions.

Good Luck and keep us posted.

Sounds like all replys have just about covered it. This is an issue that has to be decided by the rank and file.

Get together, talk about it, pros and cons. It all boiuls down to just who is willing to make the sacrifices to keep the job.

These things are important you know. Just ask the 500 or so baggage handlers that were uncerimoiously axed by Alaska Airlines at SeaTac. They were given the chance to agree on a deal to help the company keep everyone, but the balked, and were REPLACED.

Get together, VOTE, make the decision.

Ok guys, I should have given a little more background.

When I took this job 1997 it was staffed like this:

Per shift, 4 shifts = A,B,C,D

All were paid at level 5, total 16 operators. Each operator knew only one job.

4 DCS operators

4 Spinnging operators

8 Pack Operators

Then the company cut back 4 pack jobs, to level 4 pay.

The jobs were breaking down & cleaning the packs. They were "No longer required to enter a PSM area."

Then the company cut 3 pack operators, 1 spinning operator & 2 DCS operators.

So this is what we now have for staffing.

2 DCS operators (level 5)

3 Spinning operators (level 5)

1 Pack operator (level 5)

2 Pack cleaners (level 4 pay)

The company cut out 8 jobs and forced all level 5 operators to work 2 different jobs.

Now the situation is this:

All the older service people( who knew just one job and were experts on one job), got pissed off and transfered out or retired.

Now the company is stuck with people that know a little about 2 jobs, but no one knows all about one single job.

So the company offers the union level 6 pay to retain expirenced operators(2 years or more on the job). The company offers this upgrade to all DCS jobs across the plant, some where around 60 operators in 3 different areas on the plant.

Now here is the kicker, Operators in areas K & N do not have to do anything thing different than what they are currently doing. However in the area I work in, at the last minute, management demans that the level 6 DCS operators will work between 2 different physical buildings. The level 5 operators(who will not get an increase in pay) will also have to work between the buildings. The 2 buildings( which are called line 4 and line 7) were built about 15 years apart and represent 15 years of different technology.

As you can see it is a heck of a mess.

Unions have gone the way of the great Mastadons that once roamed the earth...so maybe we should just dump all union leaders aka crooks in the La Brea Tar Pits!

Charlie

What I've found is that Unions are great for the piddly stuff, i.e. The boss is discrimating against me because we have a personal issue, and terrible for the bigger things.

Where my wife works, they have a corporate sponsored union. Basically, the store executives formed the union for the employees and made them be in it. Her union is fantastic about keeping the managers in line. When 1 manager was giving my wife a hard time and eventually took disciplinary actions against her, the union stepped up. However, the union recently decided to go on strike for 15 cents an hour for lower management. that mean all of the common employees living paycheck to paycheck would be out of work so the lady working there 20 years could get an extra 15 cents. I told my wife she was crazy if she voted to strike. What do you know, the strike was voted down.

and the Contract reads? and the contract expires when?

the biggest mistake I see Management making here is they do not rotate operators? and now they are wanting to cram this rotation into their agreement? Pay is one thing.. unsafe working conditions do to Managerial Error is another

Hog

I'll keep you all posted, we should be bargaining this week,