Qwest, Unions Strike Deal

said by hottboiinnc:

What else do you want the unions to do? thats all they do is protect their check book with member "dues" they don't give a damn. They always sell out someone. Look what they did with VZ.

said by MeKuN:

Stop with your anti union propaganda. Beat a dead horse lately?

said by hottboiinnc:

I also don't see where a company should have to pay $40 an hour to someone who sits on their ass all day putting a sticker crooked on a car door. and on top of that pay their entire health care bill.

said by Steve B:

Hey, don't start insinuating that only 'real men' support unions. Some people have valid gripes with unions. One of the biggest gripes with unions is that it forces the company to keep or pay higher pay to individuals who just don't have the real job skills necessary instead of finding a person who would actually be worth the pay and that will get the job done.~snip~

said by Steve B:

Okay...at a local grocer. A woman was not doing her job well at all. She was a slacker. When management starting harping on her to get with the program, she started making waves with the union. The union promised to fight if they tried to fire her. So the grocer, kept this woman on even though she sucked at her job. She eventually quit anyway. Me and others were not surprised at all and thought it was crap.

I applaud your employer then but, not all employers are the same. Any employer will want to axe anyone with sub par performance but, unions have fought so a person in the same kind of situation can keep their job.

said by Steve B:

The other workers did not get a long with her because she was being lazy.

said by Steve B:

The other workers did not get a long with her because she was being lazy. When management approached her to shape up, she filed the complaint saying that the store was not being fair to her. The were talks done between management and the Union and the store kept her to keep the Union happy. Then one day she was just gone. I guess she found another job. In the end the situation resolved itself so now there isn't an issue but, there was.

said by Steve B:

In the eyes of her co-workers, she was. Mistakes were still being made and she wasn't working hard.

said by Steve B:

Also, most Republicans would welcome immigrants but, they want it done legally and not coming here to live off government aid.

said by Steve B:

Hey, don't start insinuating that only 'real men' support unions. Some people have valid gripes with unions. One of the biggest gripes with unions is that it forces the company to keep or pay higher pay to individuals who just don't have the real job skills necessary instead of finding a person who would actually be worth the pay and that will get the job done. Another gripe is that a lot of people believe unions tend to demand too much and are unreasonable. Supporting or not supporting a union is a iffy thing. I believe unions are beneficial as long as they don't demand too much and are reasonable. If utilized properly, unionized workers will be happy and the company will be happy. As it is though, companies tend to be too greedy and unions tend to be unreasonable and demand too much. Hence, the constant fighting when it is time to negotiate a new contract.

said by irsean:

Really??? That's why prior to Unions, industry treated workers like slaves and we had no rights. You're delusional. What do you have against the power of the people? Sounds like you're fulfilling the Totalitarian ideals of the NeoCons.
Most of our techs make about $18-$25/hr. I make a little more because I have an BSEE AND 20 years of experience.
Ask the cable techs how they get their asses ran around. Ask if they would like the protection of a Brotherhood.
Undoing Unions is equal to undoing Democracy. Keep up the evil work...putz.

said by hottboiinnc:

the thing is fair means different things to different people. To me I don't see how it is fair for a company to pay the entire cost of someone's health insurance? Why should they?

it is NOT fair for the union or any employee to ask that their employer to pay for it all. but then you have the greedy unions who think it is fair only to sell someone else out later.

EHHH a President to force you back to work? Bush would but you can bet Qwest would start locking out these unions and make them either work non-union or start hiring new ones.

said by hottboiinnc:

the thing is fair means different things to different people. To me I don't see how it is fair for a company to pay the entire cost of someone's health insurance?

said by amigo_boy:

"Fair" in a business environment is what you can negotiate. When executives negotiate obscene employment contracts, defenders of capitalism (more appropriate called socialized capitalism) say "you're just upset you couldn't negotiate something similar." Which is probably true.

But, when workers collectively negotiate, suddenly it's antithetical to free market principles? Why is that?

Mark

said by OSUGoose:

Not fair when said employer's work enviroment poses hazards not seen in outher jobs. I say if your job evvolves you needing to be out in the elements, working around outher utility facilities (esp high voltage lines) or out in roadways, then yes its fair to ask for full coverage picked up by said employer. Its called taking care of your employess that keep you running. Ask your self this, next time theres a power outage, lets say after a severe thunderstorm. Do you want someone out there working for 10/hr 40% employee pays insurance with numerious loopholes so that it realy dosent cover anything, thats worrying about making rent, car payment, ect. Trying to then concentrate on not getting struck by lighning, raising the bucket into lines that a fellow coworker in the same "benefits" package said were deenergized, but dident tag that circuit out, so another bonehead flips on the circuit figuring thats the reason for the outage, and thus frying the outher guy further delaying you getting back to watching tv, ect. Or someone paid well, is happy and has a secure future bc his employer values him, and rewards him for it with full health insurance, retirement, high standards for skill workers, ect.....

said by bjbrock:

In addition, a strike like this, which would have a tremendous effect on the economy in the region, would more than likely prompt the President to force you back to work. I think RR was the last president to invoke this power. But he did it because the well being of the country was at stake.

said by dynodb:

Reagan was able to do so because the employees in question (air traffic controllers) were Federal employees of the FAA.

said by bjbrock:

I truly hope you can get what is fair. Health care is big problem in this country. However, your possible strike, if it will disturb the continuity of service, is not fair to those who use Qwest in their business. I don't have all the answers but I still say striking is not the thing to do.

In addition, a strike like this, which would have a tremendous effect on the economy in the region, would more than likely prompt the President to force you back to work. I think RR was the last president to invoke this power. But he did it because the well being of the country was at stake.

said by sheshe :

It's a sin to see what the salary is of the CEO! What a pathetic contract. CWA only cares about "themselves", not the members. Throughout the negotiations, they didn't even keep their members up-to-date on a continous basis.