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Be Grateful You've Got a Job...?
By Kathleen Jones
This will be our last issue of The Journal before Labor Day, and with that in mind I would like to share a few thoughts with you. How often has this happened to you? You’re talking to someone – a friend, neighbor or relative perhaps – and you get on the subject of your job. Things at work aren’t going quite the way you feel they should, but the person you’re talking to seems to think you’re just complaining unnecessarily and says, “You should just be grateful you’ve got a job!” Such remarks seem to imply that, as long as you are gainfully employed, you should overlook and even willingly accept misuse and abuse from your employer! No doubt about it, good jobs are critical to the health and welfare of working families. Yes, I am glad for the job I have had these past 30 years; it pays well and has good benefits. My job gives me the means by which I can do those things I enjoy. Good jobs provide the food on our tables and the roofs over our heads. Good jobs pay for our cars and trucks, and the gasoline on which they run. Good jobs allow us to send our children to college. Good jobs also provide good benefits. These benefits provide much-needed health and dental care for ourselves and our families. Pension benefits provide us with the opportunity to enjoy our retirement with a certain degree of comfort and security. For these reasons and more, I am grateful for my job, and in return perform my assigned tasks to the best of my ability. But gratitude for a job should never be mistaken for blind acceptance of everything one’s employers says or does. It is true that good jobs are harder to come by these days. The economy is shaky, and the stock market – that be-all and end-all in some sectors – is up and down like an out-of-control roller coaster. Many companies are facing aggressive competition that is eating into their traditional market areas. Confronted with these and other factors, many companies are looking long and hard at any means by which they can cut costs and increase profits -- including fraudulent practices. No one is suggesting that unpleasant decisions are unnecessary, just that they should be made with fairness and equity in mind. The current levels of unemployment make these times an “employers’ market,” and unfortunately a prevailing attitude among management across the board is one of, “If you don’t like the way we run things around here – quit! There are plenty of people waiting out there in the unemployment lines waiting to take your place.” We've seen many "innovative" ways being used to improve a company's bottom line. One method of cutting costs to improve profits is that of downsizing one’s workforce, while increasing the remaining employees’ workload. This in turn creates a work environment that can be uncomfortable, unhealthy and unsafe. Those of us who work for SBC/Ameritech here in Ohio are, thanks to a Union that stands up for workers' rights, fortunate to have a contract that prohibits forced or mandatory overtime. Thousands of other workers throughout our cities and across the country are not so fortunate. While agencies like OSHA have guidelines and regulations suggesting limits to mandatory overtime, the present administration has taken the bite out of whatever teeth these agencies once had. In the one area of overtime, there are no national laws to protect all workers. Unless a contract limits or restricts forced overtime, or a state enacts legislation for that same purpose, workers are often at the mercy of their employers. Men and women across the country are often forced to work 12 to 16 hour shifts on a regular basis. These double shifts can be scheduled back-to-back, with a mere 8 hours’ “rest” between shifts. Does it make you feel safer, knowing that the nurse passing out meds at the hospital where someone you know is a patient, or the operator of the turbine at the local electrical plant in your hometown, may have only had 5-6 hours sleep, all because their employer doesn’t want to hire additional, needed staff? Should these workers just shut up and stop complaining? Should they simply be grateful to have a job? I personally have friends and family members who have to endure situations such as those described above. I am sure that if I were given the opportunity to talk to each one of you, you, too, could tell similar stories of unfair and unjust treatment experienced by yourself or someone you know. It might be unfair scheduling practices, unrealistic “zero tolerance” attendance policies, being forced to work outside your job title without being given appropriate compensation, being expected to complete your work on your own time without compensation, and any number of other unfair treatment. For these reasons and more, having a strong Union is the most important part of every job. Labor Day will soon be upon us. For many, it marks the unofficial end of Summer, and is a day for parties and cookouts. But it is more than just a day for “fun in the sun.” Labor Day is a day to remember where we, as Union members, have come from, of the sacrifices made by those who have gone before us, and of the work that remains to be done. Many advances in workers’ rights have been achieved over the decades, but even today, these rights are not guaranteed. Today, more than ever, they are constantly being assailed by business interests that would prefer to do without Unions and so deal with employees as they wish, without having to account to anyone. This Labor Day, take the time to celebrate the true meaning of the day. Take part in the Labor Day Parade, and then join your Union brothers and sisters at Olander Park for fun and festivities. And regardless of the date on the calendar, make every day Labor Day by supporting your Union. Remember – a Union is only as strong as the support it receives from its members. To quote Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis: "Strong responsible unions are essential to industrial fair play; without them the labor bargain is wholly one-sided." Help CWA Local 4319 to be that kind of strong and responsible union. Kathleen Jones
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