Wages are not the only thing that unions work on.
In my last private sector job I saw:
- someone promoted to project manager, not because he was most qualified but because he agreed with the boss that in exchange for the promotion he would join the company hockey team (the guy was an ex-OHL player)
- an experienced 50 year old programmer was hitting on a new university graduate. The girl complained to management saying that she didn't want to make a big deal out of it, but if someone could talk to the guy she would appreciate it. A week later she was "let go". The company needed the skills of the older programmer and in the grand scheme of things, she was expendible.
- we were required to do 10 to 15 hours of mandatory overtime when we fell behind schedule. One employee said that he could not do the 10 hours because he was taking care of his ill and dying mother. Our project leader told him he was exempt from the mandatory overtime. That afternoon she was let go. Story is that she went against the head honcho's directive and was canned for it.
I brought these up these examples in other thread and people say "well, they could have gone to court and sued". It's not that easy. Human Rights cases sometimes take 6 years to resolve. Going to court is slow, expensive (especially if you don't win) and stressful. And usually you are going it alone - it is you and your lawyer.
If I had a grievance where I think someone was promoted ahead of me because for reasons other than compentence, or I was dismissed for unjust reasons, or I was otherwise mistreated by management, I would want my union to go to for help and advice.
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Anyhow, I'm reading the news web sites comments on these strikes and there seems to be a common theme to the comments. "These people make too much money. They have to learn to live with less." It would seem that everyone seems to think that they themselves warrant a bigger paycheque, but everyone else on the planet should be making less. Johnny the firefighter, Sally the schoolteacher, Tina the web designer, Joe the postal carrier, Toby the Air Canada attendant... all greedy, spoiled, rich people. But me.... *I* deserve more money because I work really hard.... my employer should pay ME more. But nobody else.
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