i've spent the fair part of the evening in a union meeting.
i'm a member of the communications workers of america but i've never had much of a favorable view of unions. in fact, i'm conservative in regard to many issues, but liberal in others. i don't really want to get into a political rant here.
the point i'm making is that i was wrong about organized labor being unnecessary.
i work for a telephone company that is being mis-managed to the detriment of everyone: workers, shareholders, and more importantly, the consumer.
every day in my office right now could very well be the last for myself and many of my colleagues. i am in a sales environment where you are only as good as your last day on the floor. you can only be a "success" in the eyes of the company if you are successful at loading up your customer with shit they don't need. don't get me wrong, i do like my job. i like helping people. i wanted to be a teacher at one point in my life. frankly, the pay i get here is better than any teaching job i could get. but i can't in good conscience sell someone more service than they can use or afford just to pad someone else's wallet.
things are changing rapidly in my office and people are being threatened and intimidated point blank with loss of job, loss of benefits, loss of quality of life.
for what? so management and the company fatten their bottom line while the workers on the floor have no chance to advance. people can be written up or even fired without warning. no second chances. we do get rather large incentives for exceeding our "goals" but it's a pittence compared to what the company gets out of it.
i've been lucky. i've been spared several times through sheer tenacity and refusal to be broken to the point where i give up and just walk out. some people aren't so fortunate. i have the union to thank for this.
lately, things have seemed hopeless. no one felt as if we could do anything but fall in line and do things to make the company $$ that border on the unethical and perhaps are even illegal. this we as employees will take the fall for one way or another, whether by not doing what we're told or when the company starts getting fined for what they have forced us to do.
i now understand that this is why organized labor is important. at this meeting tonight, people i share the office with overwhelmed the union hall. many, like myself, were there for the first time. we all want to do what's right for ourselves and for our families and fellow workers. we want the company to stop mistreating us, and let us do our jobs to improve both their profit and our morale.
i'm just so pissed off, but relieved that i'm not the only one. it isn't just my problem. i have help. many people lost in a huge corp. don't have the luxury of a union backing them up.
i don't even know the point i'm trying to make here. i'm just venting. it's a lot to read, probably incoherent, but i already feel a bit better having just griped for a bit.
i'm a member of the communications workers of america but i've never had much of a favorable view of unions. in fact, i'm conservative in regard to many issues, but liberal in others. i don't really want to get into a political rant here.
the point i'm making is that i was wrong about organized labor being unnecessary.
i work for a telephone company that is being mis-managed to the detriment of everyone: workers, shareholders, and more importantly, the consumer.
every day in my office right now could very well be the last for myself and many of my colleagues. i am in a sales environment where you are only as good as your last day on the floor. you can only be a "success" in the eyes of the company if you are successful at loading up your customer with shit they don't need. don't get me wrong, i do like my job. i like helping people. i wanted to be a teacher at one point in my life. frankly, the pay i get here is better than any teaching job i could get. but i can't in good conscience sell someone more service than they can use or afford just to pad someone else's wallet.
things are changing rapidly in my office and people are being threatened and intimidated point blank with loss of job, loss of benefits, loss of quality of life.
for what? so management and the company fatten their bottom line while the workers on the floor have no chance to advance. people can be written up or even fired without warning. no second chances. we do get rather large incentives for exceeding our "goals" but it's a pittence compared to what the company gets out of it.
i've been lucky. i've been spared several times through sheer tenacity and refusal to be broken to the point where i give up and just walk out. some people aren't so fortunate. i have the union to thank for this.
lately, things have seemed hopeless. no one felt as if we could do anything but fall in line and do things to make the company $$ that border on the unethical and perhaps are even illegal. this we as employees will take the fall for one way or another, whether by not doing what we're told or when the company starts getting fined for what they have forced us to do.
i now understand that this is why organized labor is important. at this meeting tonight, people i share the office with overwhelmed the union hall. many, like myself, were there for the first time. we all want to do what's right for ourselves and for our families and fellow workers. we want the company to stop mistreating us, and let us do our jobs to improve both their profit and our morale.
i'm just so pissed off, but relieved that i'm not the only one. it isn't just my problem. i have help. many people lost in a huge corp. don't have the luxury of a union backing them up.
i don't even know the point i'm trying to make here. i'm just venting. it's a lot to read, probably incoherent, but i already feel a bit better having just griped for a bit.