They eventually become no different from the corporations they supposedly oppose.
Reason #461 I don’t like them was “They call me again to ask me to join the union, after I’ve turned them down five times.” It’s annoying enough when I’m feeling well. Catching me when I’m having a very low point it just aggravating. (Yes, still sick; improvement has been very slow, but at least it’s steady.)
Never let it be said that I don’t give credit where credit is due. I’ve long wanted to see someone start pointing things out like this. Pity it has to be a union I don’t trust, but gosh, who else is going to look out for the employee their own interests?
Although they don’t point out that the cost of living is much higher in those two cities than it is here, it’s certainly not that bad. Of course, as I’ve pointed out before, public sector unions are a bit out of control in CA, primarily that’s the state unions. Not that the local ones are innocent.
Ok, that’s enough ‘fair disclaimers’ for now. Look at the insane difference in pay. Click to enlarge, etc. etc.
Just a quick note: SEIU had reps outside the gates handing out flyers again last week, and I also got a call from them this weekend. They asked what I wanted to get from the city, then they pushed what they got from San Antonio. (12% raise and no increase in healthcare premiums.)
Whether or not it’s what I wanted. And I turned them down again.
Of course I brought up the lack of cost of living adjustments (I won’t dignify them with the term “raises”), but I also pointed out that we were wasting too much money on parks and “catalyzing downtown development.”
Frankly, if the downtown isn’t catalyzed after two sports venues, a hotel, a convention center, an expansion of the center, a railroad, over 100 blocks of rebuilt streets and two rebuilt freeways, it’s a lost cause. Stop pouring our money down that rat hole and spend it on the basics, like police and fire protection, and hiring enough Public Works employees to keep the water and sewer lines in repair.
Last week, I got a one page flyer frome the Service Employees International Union bragging that “We are the Majority!” It even points out that the next step is to schedule an election for city employees to vote on their choice of union. They even mention AFSCME as one of the possible choices — “the union that’s failed us for decades.” Nice tip of the hat. Of course, that fails to mention that they weren’t allowed to represent the employees, by law.
Not that anyone, even AFSCME, made a big deal out of it publicly.
SEIU makes a big deal out of winning raises of 4.5 to 12 percent in San Antonio, something that would break the budget here (as badly as we need it). They also give themselves kudos for electing a pro-union candidate (though interestingly, they don’t name Sue Lovall, in the flyer at least) and for defeating a pro-privitazation candidate. (One and the same?) They also ask that we employees keep signing the petitions they circulate. One wonders why that is necessary if we’re already in the majority?
Note: This article has been updated multiple times, because I made a total hash out of posting it early. This is now the finalized version. Apologies to all both my readers.
Recently, the SEIU ran a highly touted (by them, anyway) nationwide contest, soliciting great new ideas to work towards. They even set up a website for it.
Since Sliced Bread seeks ideas that are original and creative, have the best chance of practical success and would most effectively:
- Grow the economy
- Create good-paying jobs that allow people to raise a family, afford health insurance, pay for their children’s college education, get additional training and save for retirement
- Encourage existing companies to expand and entrepreneurs to start new ones.
Finally, keep in mind who should benefit from the ideas — whom this contest is about.
Since Sliced Bread is also changing the way Washington works. It’s an unprecedented effort to give ordinary Americans — people who are rarely asked for ideas on how to fix the economy — the chance to offer theirs. We’re serious about wanting to change the way policy ideas emerge.
Since Sliced Bread is so serious about finding and rewarding good ideas that a panel of respected thinkers and community leaders will choose 21 finalists and public voting will determine the top three ideas.
Update: all of them are now up, with comments.
The SEIU solicited the ideas late last year, spent a month parsing 22,000 of t them down to the 21 “best” to be voted on during Round One, and posted them on the 9th of this month. The response was overwhelming — overwhelmingly negative, that is. Over three hundred comments proceeded to rip, shred, tear, and even fold, spindle, and mutilate the selections. The SEIU was stunned, and Andy Stern, SEIU bigwig wrote:
I confess — I’m a bit surprised at the hostility meeting the 21 ideas announced yesterday morning. Let’s take a minute to appreciate the work of the 21 people who are finalists - they are amazing ideas that deserve discussion and consideration. Please take time to cast your vote - and encourage other people to vote, too.
In a contest like this, you have to make some hard choices. Every single idea was reviewed at least twice - even the thousands of ideas submitted in the final hours of the contest. Not everyone can be a winner in a contest like this. There are so many good ideas, we’d like to figure out how to recognize and encourage more of them. I’ve asked the folks at SinceSlicedBread.com to put together an online chat to get your feedback about how to recognize some of the innovative ideas that did not make it to the final round. Stay tuned for details….
And the response to that hasn’t exactly been positive either. Comments below the fold:
Last week, the SEIU claimed victory in its organizing drive, saying that it now has obtained a majority of the city employees’ signatures and is ready to begin representing them through the collective bargaining process. This is only possible because, prior to the last legislature changing the law, city employee unions (other than police and fire) were not allowed to represent the employees collectively. They could assist with individual cases, such as appeals and legal challenges, but AFSCME (the long-time employee union) couldn’t bargain collectively, no matter how many employees joined it. And needless to say, they didn’t, since it was useless.
Two things changed that: the legislature, and the SEIU breaking with the AFL-CIO over its lack of organizing activity. AFSCME found itself being displaced before they could do more than think about challenging the status quo. Now the SEIU claims it has met the threshhold (a majority of employees) and is ready to represent them at the bargaining table. “Not so fast,” say several other parties. First, AFSCME contends that the SEIU doesn’t qualify to represent anyone yet, because they only have signatures. The law requires that they actually have the employees as dues-paying members; said dues being paid through payroll deductions coming out of the employee’s paychecks. And that cannot happen until after there is a citywide election in which the employees vote whether or not they want to be represented by the SEIU.
Representative Kevin Bailey, D-Houston, long a good friend of the AFL-CIO, agrees that was the intent of the legislature. I find that logical (and unsurprising, considering the link), but I find it odd that the law does not make it clear. The city claims it is neutral in this legal dispute. And I have this bridge for sale.