I don’t know what has happenedto me. As a union member during part of my working life and a compassionate, caring person,(At least that is the way I have viewed myself) I am concerned about my reaction to this story.
I don’t care what happens to that paper and I certainly don’t care what happens to the union. As far as I am concerned they deserve whatever they get. I can imagine that some folks might find that insensitive.
Retired union members will scream that the benefits they gained under negotiated contracts must be honored. Current union members will inform us that they no longer receive the kind of benefits that the old timers got when they retired. This is probably all true. I don’t care.
What I remember is when I transitioned from union staff into management. I anticipated no problems with the unions. After all, I had been a union member and helped organize an agency I worked for. Then, to my surprise, I was suddenly the enemy.
People I had worked with changed. I didn’t understand that this is a common occurence based on several realities, none of which I had been aware of, and that really didn’t have anything to do with me personally.
Then, when contract time rolled around, I saw what the union is really about. Shop stewarts began to manufacture lies about the terrible things that management was planning to do to the rank and file. When a strike was called management had tires slashed, glue put into the locks of their cars and in some cases their homes.
After the strike had been settled all was forgiven. Incompetent workers got raises like everyone else. Speaking of incompetent workers, the majority of those people I encountered, no matter how stupid, alcoholic or just plain lazy, were like Philadelphia lawyers when it came to the contract.
Consequently, I now, at this point in my life, couldn’t care less about what happens to rags like the N.Y. Times, or to the union members. Rewarded incompetence based on union extortion never increased productivity. I’m trying to think of a non-profane way to end these comments. I’m having trouble, so I’ll just steal a line. “The chickens are coming home to roost.”
There is only one reason for any union to exist these days. They are nothing more than job protection schemes for the least competent people. These people couldn’t get an honest job at a real company.
That was a great post, and I know it took some effort to tell, so many thanks.
To see the Globe, which I’m sure has championed every union initiative for the last 40 years or so, in danger of being brought low by its own unions, well, irony is seldom that rich.
I've been wondering for awhile what percentage of the newly unemployed are coming from the ranks of Zero's supporters. Hopefully they will learn from their mistakes; I wouldn't bet on it though.