It is extremely bothersome to me that Labor Union membership has declined to 8% of the American labor force (or less). As a retiree, I am obviously no longer in a position to worry about how union membership might affect my future career and quality of life, but I am not too old to realize that my current quality of life (which is comfortable) would have been far below the standard I enjoy had it not been for labor unions.
Even though I only joined the union when my employment required it, I was always willing to accept the benefits that became the standard in most work places because those benefits were negotiated into existence. Whether part of the membership or not, I was always represented by a labor union.
In this time of economic hardship for the work force and record breaking profits for the corporations, I would like to propose a partial solution to the dilemma faced by dwindling union membership.
The strength of the labor union has always been, and always will be in the vast numbers of its membership. If it doesn’t already exist, I would propose establishing two levels of supporting membership (a reduced fee supporting level that carries no ability to vote and a full fee supporting level that carries the ability to vote) that will assist with rebuilding the rank and file. Supporting members will be able to participate in picket line activities, and will ensure that a boycott against labor hostile companies has the ability to affect the bottom line more severely. Additionally, supporting membership will allow those retirees feeling useless and cast aside to step up one more time in support of the economic future of this faltering, once great Nation.
The benefits of union membership must be aimed toward improving the quality of life for each member and his/her family. If an infusion of supporting members brings additional money and opportunity to that process, it will benefit everyone involved. I, for one, would like to see an environment of people helping people re-established in average America, and honesty, integrity, and genuine caring rewarded rather than scoffed at or punished by those supposedly representing our interests.
I look forward to a thoughtful discussion on this concept.
Respectfully,
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2 comments:
BRILLIANT IDEA!
Feel free to copy and paste this (an invitation to all who agree with the concept) to an e-mail or your blog. I actually sent it out to a few union websites, but would really like to see the discussion get underway.
I know there is a shake-up taking place in the union world right now, and I hope it is one that will benefit labor in the long run.I would like to hear more about it from those in the know, rather than Fox News...we shall see.
Anyway, Mr. N... I would like to do more than boycott WalMart, so I hope this ends up in the public square.
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