With the recent bruhaha going on over BC Ferries here with the Union fighting for whatever it is they’re fighting for (I haven’t actually heard – all the media tells me is that the Union “claims it’s about more than wages”) I wanted to add my own little tangent.
Comments on this are already abundant on both Donna and Darren‘s sites. So rather than infiltrate their pages, I figured I’d start my own thread here.
One of the discussions that came up was the attempted unionization of McDonald’s. I spent a little over three years at my McJob when I was in high school, and I must say that I was treated really well there. Perhaps my boss, the franchisee, was an exception, but I kind of doubt it. McDonald’s was so highly regulated and automated that I don’t think even he had a whole lot of control over how employees are treated. It’s actually run almost like a union shop already – without the part about protecting idiots simply because of senority.
The scheduling system is automated to both comply with labour laws, and maximize efficiency based on staff availability and customer volume.
There is a set disciplinary system in place, complete with set numbers of warnings and times written up for an offense that don’t fluctuate. The only things someone could be fired for immediately were serious offenses like stealing. Duh. I bet if McD’s were unionized they would no longer be able to do that without a fight from the Union (silly as it seems).
This system also includes a regular review process in which employees who are performing their job with any degree of competency at all receive regular incremental wage raises twice a year. If unions were present, there would be no incentive to perform the job well to receive your earned compensation – because you would get your raise for just showing up each day (and stealing if you want to).
There is also a grievance process. Staff are encouraged to use postage paid forms to submit their complaints directly to their regional head office. These complaints are then typed, voided of details identifying the complainant, and returned to the franchisee, who is also evaluated based upon his/her handling of the complaint.
The other point I feel it’s important to address is that people go into jobs knowing full well what to expect. If you’re applying at McDonald’s, you know that you will be either making or serving fast food in a highly automated environment. You will receive training, but not a lot of skill or interpretation is required to perform the job, and your compensation reflects that. You also know that the restaurant (at least the drive-thru) is open 24 hours now, and you may well be expected to work shifts between 4 and 8 hours any time during business hours.
The same goes for Starbucks, Translink, BC Ferries, Telus etc. You know you will be making coffee, or driving a bus, or ringing up cafeteria food, or photocopying.
I know there are a shortage of jobs out there right now, and it’s not easy to say “if you don’t like your job, get another one or go to school to improve your skills” – because that’s not always an option. The better answer is to say “I’m sorry you don’t like your job, but do whatever is in your power to either find something else, or find value in your work as long as you have to be there.”
I do think Unions are dinosaurs, and don’t have a place in the 20th century workplace. I don’t think that the labour system is fair to workers in general either. If Unions want to redeem themselves, why not fight for all workers (like they did when they originally formed) and try to reform the labour code? Childcare, Equal Pay for Equal Time, better compensation for overtime, better (or any) benefits packages subsidized by companies and the government for all workers – the list goes on – where are these issues in Union negotiations?
These arguments don’t come up, because if the system reformed, the pseudo-need that Unions create for themselves would fade, and they would disappear. And people like Jimmy Hoffa would no longer be pseudo celebrities and live off the dues from the “working man.”
Can’t I be Anti-Union and Pro-Labour Reform? Where’s the Union for that?
Unions are not only needed by workers they are needed by companies. It gives them a fair playing field and experienced, trained workers. Yes sometimes the lazy don’t do a days work. It is up to you to decide what is right. No product, No paycheck.
Non-union is hypocrytical. They compare themselfs to Union rates of pay and benifits yet fail to realize the Union fought for these items and non-union would be recieving Soup cans without Unions. Show me a non-union wage earner that makes long term earnings that compare to them. They usually lose their job if they ask for anything including safety. You want unions to influence politicians for you? When was the last time you went to the government or for that matter wrote a letter to your representative. Why do the governments keep pushing workers to save there own pension funds. If you spend your 30 years of working life never accumulating pension how will you retire? Do non-union companies provide that for you? Does the wealthy Mcpension fund exist? Senority, protects and equalizes. If you need Union representation then ask one.
Unions are not only needed by workers they are needed by companies. It gives them a fair playing field and experienced, trained workers. Yes sometimes the lazy don’t do a days work. It is up to you to decide what is right. No product, No paycheck.
Non-union is hypocrytical. They compare themselfs to Union rates of pay and benifits yet fail to realize the Union fought for these items and non-union would be recieving Soup cans without Unions. Show me a non-union wage earner that makes long term earnings that compare to them. They usually lose their job if they ask for anything including safety. You want unions to influence politicians for you? When was the last time you went to the government or for that matter wrote a letter to your representative. Why do the governments keep pushing workers to save there own pension funds. If you spend your 30 years of working life never accumulating pension how will you retire? Do non-union companies provide that for you? Does the wealthy Mcpension fund exist? Senority, protects and equalizes. If you need Union representation then ask one.
Well, it’s always nifty when anything relating to a union/strike comes up. Sure better labour laws would obviate the need for unions. Hey, if everyone would just stop doing crimes, we wouldn’t need prisons. God, I’m so profound at 6:07 AM!
I guess it depends on how you see the corporate imperative: is it profitability and treating workers well insofar as it enables a corporation to be profitable, or is it to create an institution which somehow allows a better situation for all concerned, employers and employees? The former view allows the treatment of workers as commodity—if I were a corp. and I purchased a load of lumber and it were defective, short of having a talk with my supplier, etc. etc., I’d probably find some new lumber. People are not lumber. Sure, you can treat them like lumber, but is it _right_?
Peechie, you have hit the nail on the head. In today’s economy, Union’s are a way of the dinosaur. How are companies supposed to compete, keep their employees contract and keep prices low with all the competition out there?
I have worked in a union environment and it was very difficult. There was no such thing as an “open door policy” because everyone involved was bound to the “contract”. Essentially, the work environment was hostile- everyone had to cover their butts. Every discussion was documented and witnessed. The concept of “team work” was thrown out the window because “that’s not my job”.
Perhaps the grass is greener on the other side, I don’t know. I can say, without a doubt though, I will hesitate greatly before I work in another union environment ever again.
rog: I’m sorry, I missed your comment. I have to agree with you on the training wage.
but that’s just more silly legislation interfering with the marketplace.
It’s a given that McYuk’s is going to chase any competitive adantage they can.
BC made a mistake in enacting that legislation. It hasn’t led to more jobs created and it has just been a burden that’s been placed on the trainees via Victoria.
ouch.
*BlInKsiNaWe*
hey you,
how’d ya like to be the second official libertarian in Canada.
nice rant.
Kudos to you for taking such lessons from your “exploitation”
I hope one day you find a business model and pathway to whatever ya dream of doing.
Being “exploited” is fine for the while, but you never really have fun or make money until you work for yourself.
Bon CHance.
Rog: yes, the training wage sucks, although I can see its good intentions. There should be exceptions for it though. If you have lived in BC for less than 3 years when you enter the workforce, and are over the age of majority – it’s likely you’ve worked “somewhere” before, and should be exempt. Other than that, it works sort of like the university co-op program. Kids are overworked and underpaid, but ultimately gain some work experience and graduate past that point.
I don’t believe that raising the minimum wage is a good answer – all it means is the people who pay their employees min. wage need to raise their prices to maintain their profit margin, and the vicious cycle continues. Unions perpetuate this “higher wage/higher cost” cycle. There should be more social reform (yes, in an ideal world where the government is representative and accountable and honest) – and at the least, less Unions (since their role in reform these days is far from productive).
i quite agree with rog.
You know, I almost made a comment on one of the other threads that McDonalds does almost act like a Unionized company, except for the wages. When I say that they treat their employees poorly, I’m specifically talking about the below-minimum wage “training wage” which is a travesty if you ask me.
I do think the “you knew what to expect” is a bit harsh and cold, the job market is not exactly supurb currently and not everyone has the benefits of being well-educated or having the financial means to get a jump start. It’s real easy to tell people to pick themselves up, but if your low wages are only barely paying your bills, even things like presentable clothing for interviews can be difficult.
Jobs need to pay at least minimum wage so that people can create that ladder of upward mobility for themselves. That’s what minimum wage is for. There’s no justification in my mind whatsoever for a lower “training wage”, especially for a company with a disposable workforce.
Even then, minimum wages are low. I’ve heard people claim that welfare should be lowered because it pays better than minimum wage and thus doesn’t give incentive for seeking employment, but that’s ass-backwards. Welfare has been well researched for poverty-levels, living expenses, etc. so if it’s higher that suggests that minimum wages are too low. Instead of booting a bunch of people off of welfare because they are well-bodied and declared fit for work, how about giving them an incentive by upping minimum wages to the point that it can actually fill basic needs.
There’s another point, although it’s off-topic: fit for work does not equal employable. Who will be hiring these people exactly?
I have to say that I really agree with your main sentiment though peechie. If we have better labour laws, then we shouldn’t need Unions. In fact, it’s much like having a province-wide (or country-wide) Union, or if you rather, social system. Regulated and paid by tax dollars instead of dues. It would involve a lot less corruption and certainly less disruptive job actions (they used to call them strikes). Maybe then we could get rid of these archiac microcosm social-gov’ts that we call Unions.
Of course, a lot of people wouldn’t trust that and with the way that BC rotates gov’t I don’t know if I would either. The laws/regulations would have to be very well thought out and binding so that the next gov’t down the line couldn’t just repeal/taint them.
Amen, sistah!
(I dunno what brought that on, but well said.)