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| "Exodus from Egypt" by Marc Chagall |
It's not a very popular thing these days to say you're a trade unionist. Unions are being demonized daily as the cause of everything that ails this country.
But I am proud to be a trade unionist and I'll tell you why. Ever since Moses led the Israelites away from the bondage of the Pharaoh - the
first record of a strike, I believe - the one sure way for working people to win the respect of the boss was to organize. As it was, so it shall be.The recent decline of unions is the main reason why most Americans no longer enjoy job security, the prospect of a decent pension, decent pay, good health benefits, safety on the job, paid vacations, sick pay and respect from the boss is that America's trade unions have been beaten down. If working people want those back, their choice is obvious.
On this Labor Day, I find myself humming a great old union song, "Which Side Are You On?" That really is the question we all need to ask.
The song was originally written and performed by Florence Reece to rally the strikers during a bitter Appalachian coal mine strike I saw her perform it once when she was quite elderly at a gala celebration at the Highlander Center in East Tennessee. But I found a vintage recording of her as a much younger woman singing it on YouTube. That is the first video below, followed by a modernized and more popular version by Pete Seeger.
Finally, there's a brand new version by Boston's own Drop Kick Murphys.
And Pete Seeger:
And the Drop Kick Murphys:
Author: Will Collette
Long ago, unions outlived their usefulness...just look at what the teachers' union has done to education in this state...
ReplyDeleteOur son has been a mechanic at a Honda dealer in Texas for over 10 years. Of course there is no union there and I'm sure many would applaud that fact. About a year ago a new service manage came in. Shortly after the more senior, and higher paid, mechanics started having serious errors in their work being discovered and, one by one, they have been fired.
ReplyDeleteOur son returned from vacation a few weeks ago and picked up his bonus check for superior work over the past three months. A couple hours later he was called in and told he was fired for an error that was a safety risk.
And then they tried to tell him that he was really fired before vacation started, although he worked a few hours that day, and they were not going to pay his vacation.
And of course, by not laying him off, they could fight payment of unemployment. Perhaps because it's Texas that's easy - the company evidently gets to decide.
Oh, and he hopes to become a cancer survivor in a couple years but that means he has a pre-existing condition and very high costs for periodic testing that needs to be done. With our healthcare system in the USA he may not be covered for anything related to the cancer. So does he stop the tests, which he cannot afford?
I'm sure some are quite happy to say that this is the way our country should work: employment at will, benefits at the whim of the employer, and the fear of loss of healthcare to keep employees loyal and desperate. The slogan is "succeed or die" I think.
I do not agree.
(This comment was so long I should have written it as an article...)
Anonymous betrays a knee-jerk ignorance of what life was like before unions. Read "Life in the Iron Mills" to get an idea of life for 19th century workers or study up on textile workers in Rhode Island in the 20th. Before the first teachers' union in Rhode Island (Pawtucket Teachers Alliance, founded in 1947 by Edmund Farrell and William Bray), teachers were hired and fired at the whim of mayors and other politicos; nepotism was rampant and salaries were abysmal.
ReplyDeleteWhen unions are broken, expect a retreat to low wages, hiring by patronage, and firing the meritorious when their salaries rise (see Tom's comments above). Don't expect innovation or even the ability to talk back to management. When you can be terminated for any or no reason, and when your health care is tied to your job, only toadies will win the day.
Unions have not ruined education in this or any other state. Read Diane Ravitch's THE DEATH AND LIFE OF THE GREAT AMERICAN SCHOOL SYSTEM and learn something of the complexities of the problems facing our schools. Standardized testing, teaching to the test, merit based on testing scores, charter schools which undermine the public system by siphoning off only the ablest students, and a parental culture that does not support discipline in the classroom are among the factors that have led us to the sorry state in which we find ourselves---not the teachers' unions that demand decent wages.
As far as the teachers unions in this state, why is it thousands of dollars cheaper to send a kid to Prout or Bishop Hendricken than to a public high school (and, oh by the way, get a way better education)....
ReplyDeleteDear Anonymous - first, state your name. Second, do better than dish out unsubstantiated anti-union one-liners.
ReplyDeleteThird, I don't know where you went to school, but try using proper grammar.
If you are simply going to violate our comment policy by hiding in anonymity, making statements you either can't or won't back up, you're not going to be allowed to use this blog as a forum.
Catholic schools do a nice job of educating young people. They do so with direct and indirect public subsidies (including tax exempt status), charge tuitions, pay teachers and staff less than a living wage and "cherry-pick" their student.
Public schools must accept all students, rather than pick and choose.
I graduated from Sacred Heart Academy in Central Falls (if you're younger than 55, you probably never heard of Sacred Heart). In total, I did 12 hard years in parochial schools so I have some first hand experience.
I am grateful for what they taught me, but I also know I missed a lot by being in a self-selected educational enclave.
Anonymous, I just don't know what your beef is with teachers and their unions. I think teachers are among the most valuable professionals we will ever encounter. They are entrusted with our future and we damned well should treat them as nice as we can.
I am sick and tired of right-wing trolls treating teachers - and police, firefighters and other public employees - with such scorn and disrespect.
State your name, lay out your facts or get the hell off this blog.
Though it's difficult to get any numbers about the private schools besides tuition on a Sunday morning, it's clear that the comment about comparable costs of public and private schools is disingenuous at best and more likely purposefully deceptive with the assumption that cynical readers will nod knowingly.
ReplyDeleteIt is easy to get the total budget of the public schools and divide by the number of students. Getting comparable budget numbers is the trick and Anonymous is clearly stating a talking point without quantitative backup.
Some difficulties in comparison:
. The private school rely quite heavily on a giving program and alumni are solicited rigorously for money. They also have a paid corporate sponsor program.
. The public schools also provide services which the private schools do not. Examples are comprehensive bus service and extensive services and support for struggling and disadvantaged students which are very expensive.
I have a long personal history of working with schools and I have some serious stories of disappointment with particular teachers and the union environment. But I will not say they automatically apply to Chariho schools and the cost of public schooling in particular.
How is it "cheaper" to pay private school tuition rather than send your kids to the free public schools? If anything, people who send their kids to private school are paying twice, since their taxes already pay for the public schools whether they use them or not. Both my parents taught in public schools and sent my sister, brother, and me to public schools. Would I be doing better now in life if part of my education had been devoted to religious indoctrination rather than actual subject matter? I don't think so.
ReplyDelete