Techsurvivors
Welcome to Techsurvivors => Community => Topic started by: jchuzi on November 21, 2019, 04:15:57 AM
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I taught in high schools for over 30 years and I appreciate the benefits of union membership, not the least of which was protection against rapacious employers (and I include school boards in that category). When I started, my salary was a princely $7200 per annum and I would still have been making that 30 years later if not for my union. In addition, the union protected students by insisting on limiting class size and other good things.
Now, Google has become anti-union. Read Google Hires Firm Known for Anti-Union Efforts (https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/20/technology/Google-union-consultant.html). There are, admittedly, some employers that treat their employees fairly and equitably, but there are too many that exploit the employees to line their own pockets.
Shame on Google!
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I have experienced teachers unions from both sides--as a rank-and-file classroom teacher and as a school administrator--and I pretty much agree that they have done much good. But during my college years I was a member of two different Teamsters locals. I naively thought they were supposed to be working for me, but instead I got the distinct feeling that I was being exploited by them. While in the early days of unionism there definitely was a need, some union leaders became rather tyrannical and "used" their members to gain power for themselves. In the case of Google and other Silicon Valley tech firms, it seems to me that their employees should enjoy the good life they already have and not let union activists mess things up for them. This thread could potentially get contentious but PLEASE, let's keep it civil. If the admins see a need to censor something, I can accept that. FWIW
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Unions are not perfect, as the history of the Teamsters shows. Still, as a staunch union supporter, I would rather have one on my side than rely upon the good will of my employer.