Union Membership

[yerwot?]

in my experience, an awful lot of stewards/union reps do the job because nobody else will. A thankless job in many ways, you get shit from both sides. More firms than ever refuse the use of their premises for meetings and the time for them. Taking on a firm , however wrong they are, ends badly for the little guy, and could find future employment very difficult due to the illegal but prevalent 'blacklisting'. An employee is entitled to a witness at any management-called meeting regarding discipline, you need to insist on your rights.
Best to join a union, say fuck all and keep the union up to date. They do up-close-and personal stuff for a living and can run rings around anyone who is all bluster and no knowledge.
Firms can and do discourage union membership, banning it is a very different thing and illegal.

 

[Anonymous]

There are firms around who don't like you to join unions , i should know ... i encountered one in Trafford Park !

I went for a job interview at an engineering firm there back in 2004 , after leaving Royal Mail , where i'd been a dedicated union member for 24 years ..... but as soon as i asked the boss interviewing me whether they had a union or not , i was met with a steely glint of the eye , and firmly told .. "no , we don't feel the need for a union here , we sort things out amongst ourselves , and we don't want anyone coming in an' rocking the boat"!!

At which point i departed , before i was thrown out ..... and needless to say i never heard from them again!

 

[mat]

in my experience, an awful lot of stewards/union reps do the job because nobody else will. A thankless job in many ways, you get shit from both sides. More firms than ever refuse the use of their premises for meetings and the time for them. Taking on a firm , however wrong they are, ends badly for the little guy, and could find future employment very difficult due to the illegal but prevalent 'blacklisting'. An employee is entitled to a witness at any management-called meeting regarding discipline, you need to insist on your rights.
Best to join a union, say fuck all and keep the union up to date. They do up-close-and personal stuff for a living and can run rings around anyone who is all bluster and no knowledge.
Firms can and do discourage union membership, banning it is a very different thing and illegal.

Exactly.

I've been a local rep and your fucked either way. were currently working to rule which we balloted with a strong result for action. Instead of talking they are bullying staff into working imposed rosters and tried to get one to report me for harassment. The dispute was deliberately engineered IMO to try and get rid of my union and it's backfired badly. Even the tory voting staff have had enough that's how bad it's getting!!!