Labor Unions

[Gregory Matthews]

SDA RNs vote to Unionize,  see the following link.  NOTE:  A SDA hospital CEO once told me that he had found it easier to deal with a hospital that was represented by a labor union than to deal with a hospital that was not.

https://www.sacbee.com/news/local/healthandmedicine/article272966320.html?fbclid=IwAR0WvutCg1AoNTaZ_C_SvGoiTJyajQXB0carlWBnj_DCjuOxWtpWV7aPsFg

It should also be noted the Loma Linda is going to court to fight a Unionization attempt.  See:

https://spectrummagazine.org/news/2023/legal-battle-begins-over-unionization-loma-linda-university-health

[Gustave]

I was under the impression that if enough employees of a business voted to unionize the only thing left was the official formalization of it? Granted I don't know much about Unions but do know that you do so I'll sit back and listen on this one! 

[phkrause]

3 hours ago, Gustave said:

I was under the impression that if enough employees of a business voted to unionize the only thing left was the official formalization of it?

I agree and I believe it is so, but the employer can fight it in court!! Not sure if being in a Union or not is good or bad?? I do know that when my father was working he was in a Union and if not for that union he probably would've been laid of much earlier, so in on sense they were good but in the end not so good!! Non union shops are also good and not so good! Depends on the employer. I worked for AUC press and it did seem to work OK for us, but after they got sold, and became Atlantic Graphics, it was good for a while, but than a lot of people started wanting to become a union!! So in my humble opinion it's a hard call!!

[Gustave]

10 hours ago, phkrause said:

I agree and I believe it is so, but the employer can fight it in court!! Not sure if being in a Union or not is good or bad?? I do know that when my father was working he was in a Union and if not for that union he probably would've been laid of much earlier, so in on sense they were good but in the end not so good!! Non union shops are also good and not so good! Depends on the employer. I worked for AUC press and it did seem to work OK for us, but after they got sold, and became Atlantic Graphics, it was good for a while, but than a lot of people started wanting to become a union!! So in my humble opinion it's a hard call!!

I'm in 100% agreement with you on the good not so good part! I had a family member who was screwed over by their employer (lied about in terrible way) and the union essentially did NOTHING for them or the horde of other similarly situated people - 7 years after that employment action the Union took the matter to arbitration and won in a most decisive way. Pastor Gregory was a huge help to me in navigating through that mess which thanks to God turned out the way it should have (it didn't for around 30 other people). 

So, on one hand the Union ended up giving us justice, but they defecated on many other people who were absolutely innocent. My view is that initially Unions were a much needed entity but after time they became more of a self-serving entity that doubled as a P.A.C. I'm thankful for the outcome I'm speaking about but feel very badly for all the folks who were totally innocent and got knifed in the back and thrown overboard for the sharks. 

[I had forgotten about that.  Now I remember.  Glad that I was able to give you good advice.  But, the bottom line was your extensive efforts over a period of years.  You never gave up and finally you got justice--GM.]

[Gustave]

Just now, Gustave said:

I'm in 100% agreement with you on the good not so good part! I had a family member who was screwed over by their employer (lied about in terrible way) and the union essentially did NOTHING for them or the horde of other similarly situated people - 7 years after that employment action the Union took the matter to arbitration and won in a most decisive way. Pastor Gregory was a huge help to me in navigating through that mess which thanks to God turned out the way it should have (it didn't work out for around 30 other people). 

So, on one hand the Union ended up giving us justice, but they defecated on many other people who were absolutely innocent. My view is that initially Unions were a much needed entity but after time they became more of a self-serving entity that doubled as a P.A.C. I'm thankful for the outcome I'm speaking about but feel very badly for all the folks who were totally innocent and got knifed in the back and thrown overboard for the sharks. 

 

[Dr. Shane]

I have mixed feelings about unions.  I have been a union member in the past.  Currently, I live in a right to work state.  In a right to work state, the employees can vote to unionize but those that do not want to join the union do not have to.  Consequently, the unions do not have a lot of power.  Without unions corporations have a history of taking advantage of workers.  When there are unions, unions have a history of keeping corporations from being competitive.  There are two extremes.  Collective bargaining does seem to work well in some European countries.  It works so well in some that they do not have a minimum wage.  They don't need it because workers are protected by unions.  

[Kevin H]

Mrs. White warns us that eventually labor unions will join with the very evil that they were designed to fight, and that they will be active in the removal of liberty of conscience. Thus Adventist tradition has been to simply side with the evil that unions were designed to fight and be anti-union. Today the large unions are indeed in unison and a part of big business, just as she predicted. They only deal with little issues here and there to appear useful. Is it possible to join and support unions as far as they fight the evils, even if it only is a little bit on the local level, and to be aware of these two warnings?