Faced with a looming strike on June 10, 2010, several Minneapolis nurses refused to follow union boss marching orders and instead stayed on the job to care for their patients. Although they resigned their membership before the strike took place, three nurses were threatened with union disciplinary hearings for refusing to walk off the job. With the help of Right to Work attorneys, these nurses have now filed unfair labor practice charges to hold union officials accountable for their heavy-handed intimidation tactics. Here's a video report on the incident from a local Minneapolis station:
For related coverage, check out articles from Minnesota Public Radio and The Minnesota Star-Tribune. You can also read the Foundation's press release on the incident here.
The Right to Work Foundation has also extended an offer of free legal aid to any nurses facing similar union "disciplinary hearings." Interested parties should use the contact information provided here to determine if they're eligible for assistance.
UPDATE: On Monday, August 2, Foundation attorneys filed another round of charges against the MNA union on behalf of Susan Clark, a nurse who was never informed of her right to leave the union to avoid participating in the recent Minneapolis hospital strike. A copy of Clark's charges can be found here (.pdf).
Comments
What the union really means
With the "clerical error" comment, the union implies that they sent out many more such letters, which they are not retracting, to nurses who didn't resign from the union but also didn't join the picket lines. That still seems pretty bogus to me, even if it's legal.
Clerical Error?
So, it was all due to a "clerical error," huh? Baloney!!! I got yer clerical error! That's nothing but a big fat cover-up, otherwise known as a lie!! Unions have long out-lived their original purpose and usefulness. Now, it's time for them and their power-hungry cronies to go bye-bye.
Your comment gets 5 stars
Your comment gets 5 stars
Unions
Everyone here told it like it is!!The truth!!My opinion Obama,the unions,And the middle east crises are trying to breck America.And they are doing a bang up job of it!They are like the middel east everything is done by lies and force.And anyone who gets in thier way they destroy!I thank God for these two nurses for the stand they took!! And my prayers are with them because America in in a big crises.And they are the biggest part of the problem.If we all remmber Bin Laden hit the World Trade Center's have we forgotten? That was a they symbol of what they were doing,so Obama,the Unions,Middel East are part of the plot.May God Be watching over America.
Uniions
When Eastern Air Lines was in the air, for years the largest (passenger miles) airline in the world we were working in a company that was bound by unions; the pilots union, the stewardess union, and the mechanics union, however reservations was not unionized, and we did benefit in the short run because we received many increases in salary and perks, consequently in the long run we lost our jobs because of union/management conflicts as both would not compromise and the airline went out of business, as did TWA and PAN AM, so what is the answer? NO UNIONS but allow the employees a right to talk with management to resolve major conflicts. JOBS are important to the legal American. We lost 36,000 job with Eastern alone. The unions are too powerful now during this administration because of political pay-backs. When it comes to the safety and well-being or the populous the government should step in as did Reagan with the Traffic Controllers and dissolve the issue however necessary!
UNIONS & RTW States
I am in basically unfamiliar territory here, other than having held a minor union official position in a major union. I must agree, that for the most part, unions have outgrown their usefulness and purpose. However, there are two sides to this coin, one which is very prevalent in right to work states! SAFETY!
Yes, union workers do enjoy more benefits, and in most cases a higher wage than their non-union counterparts. Putting aside benefits, mostly rolled into wages, or kept separately, in right-to-work states, i.e., Kansas, there are many companies and corporations with non-union workers, that are FORCED to do non-safe tasks, some of which that could be fatal, and with absolutely no regard for that/those employees well-being! With most of these companies, profit and productivity are their only concerns with little or no regard for employees!
In many cases, a strawboss (usually illiterate, but with a brownnose of achievment) assigns a task that has great risks to one's health and well being, even to the point of causing a fatality.
Examples, some heavy equipment when being worked upon, in union shops, safety procedures such as locking out an electrical relays box by a supervisor, or person doing the repair mainenance, so that the equipment could not be activated while repairs are in progress.
While these procedures may fall under the protection of OSHA, they are totally disregarded in many instances in a non-union shop! You say this can't happen with a governmental agency writing the rules and over-seeing compliance, think again!
This happens all the time on a regular basis, in non-union shops. Safety appliances are removed from operating machines to facilitate production, only to be quickly reinstated upon advanced notice of a few days, or in some cases several hours, that OSHA will be conducting an inspection of workplace machinery.
Remember, we, or you, are dealing with the government and its regulations. The DOJ is a good example of this with their gun running schemes now being investigated. However, if in a UNION shop, the worker has a measure of protection whereby a worker CANNOT BE FORCED to do an unsafe task! Note: Advanced notice of an inspection in union shops is usually initiated by the union. Whereas, OSHA conveniently (politically?) advises the company of the date and time when an inspection will be held so they can PREPARE in advance!
In another example, a company/corporation that I won't name, but is located in Kansas and Nebraska, which makes hospital/medical supplies along with other non-related products, had a silk screening department that used dangerous chemicals, which stated on the 55 gallon storage drums to use ONLY WITH ADEQUATE VENTILATION. This company's idea of adequate ventilation was to have a standard entrance door blocked open in the warm months, or cracked adjar about 12 inches in the cold months, with total disregard for the safety and well being of its employees!
To protest this workplace environment for lack of safety would give said employee a stern warning to employee(s) to work as the company had provided, in the specified workplace, or draw your pay and look for another job!
Since these unscrupulous companies usually set up shop in highly economically depressed rural areas, where the wage is minimum as stated by law (only because the government states that this poverty wage must be paid, with a lower wage unacceptable), workers desperate for employment to put some bread on the table risk their safety, well being, and death on a daily basis.
These examples, and many others that can be attributed to a right-to-work state and non-union shop are the ONLY points still made for the usefulness of having union protection! I can produce facts to back up my statements. Another thing about a right-to-work state, Kansas in example, because of not having been involved in, or researched other such states, Kansas is the RTW state that I can cite from experience. In Kansas, non-union workers are FORCED to accept workman's compensation, WITHOUT the right to litigation in the event of injury or death! In my case, working at the factory noted, I sustained an injury to my arm about 20 years ago through NO FAULT of my own. Other than drawing disability compensation for about two months, and after being released to return to my employment, I attended a hearing before a judge to assess the value of my injury for compensation purposes. I was awarded a 3% disability rating, but still, 20 years later, I only have partial use and movement of that arm, along with cronic pain. My award from the judge hearing that case was a settlement of less than $1,000. In my case, that award has been spread out over 20 years and how many more years I manage to inhale oxygen, still enduring the pain and disability which gets worse with each passing year!
Kansas Workman's Compensation is geared to protect the company, not for providing a safety net for employees forced to work under these laws! With this, I rest my case on the value of unions and drawbacks of Right-to-Work states...Kansas Kahuna
right to work vs union safety
I don't know where you got your info must have been from a union propaganda library. I have worked in both shops and the safety rules apply to both union and nonunion shops the only diffrence is you don't need to go to the break room to get the steward to sign off on a lock out tag,I have seen more instaces of by passing the rules by union shops than in non union because the steward looks the other way for the company for a few extra so they can keep production going. Unions feel they set the rules not OSHA.I was a safty inspector for our company who was the general contractor I had warned the union steward of several dangerous electrical cords on three foloors and even red taget several and un pluged them the next morning Ifound the tags gone and the cords back in use when I asked a few men who plued them back they said the steward had done it,I went to his office and told him he half an hour to replace the cords or I would shut him down,he told me to get out so a half hour later I cut the ends of every cord that were bad and about 25'so they could not be repluged,the big mouth power wanabe came to my office threating me with every even having my hands broken ,I pulled his contract for numerous violations and had his co escorted off the job by the cops ,I was not only the safety inspector but the project manager this was theonly company that I had problems with because it was the only usless union company and we were working in a right to work state and the arbitrators aggreed with me and I had a non union contractor on the job and saved about 30thousand at the end and finished 25 days sooner with out the worthless union people
Employee Safety
Workmans Compensation is set up for BOTH Employee & Employer and Osha is also there,I not only lost a son killed on the job,but I also worked for Workmans Comp. so I have seen "both ends of it" Workmans Comp takes care of the injured and they can also get a Comp Attorney if they want. Workmans Comp also went to the employers and did training on workplace safety and had many restrictions for safety. Unions back in the 30's & 40's were needed,but NOT NOW they have turned into LABOURS of GREED & SAVAGORY to frieghten people. The are formed like the MAFIA and now are being used by Obama as his army,Obama has them world wide they are involved in everything he is doing. They are evil and don't care about the people,he is using them in the these youth take over of Banks etc. You will also find that he will use them along with ACORN to catapult him back into the White House. and we are paying for it in the Union Dues..America needs to be saved and I believe one of the first things to go are the UNIONS, everything that is costing americans freedom and destroying the WORKPLACE need to go..Obama don't care about the unions only to use them for HIS prupose..The Unions want the pipeline from CANADA to US, Obama is putting it off until he is re-elected...CANADA wont' wait and will sell it to China...ALSO what Obama knows that the Unions don't know is the "Middle East"is planning on shutting off ALL oil to the WEST...so Obama isn't honoring any FRIENDSHIPS with the Unions...no oil no work and he has brought America down.So Mr.Union thug where will you get your $$ then? You will be the first Obama puts in his "concentration camps" Obama has you so stirred up you can't see he is using you and the College Professors to destroy America,Who will they teach when America is destroyed?? What job will you try to take over then?
Class is in session
From every example you list you seem to remove all responsibility from the employee. Your argument for wage setting is weak; if I am looking for employment, I look at the job, my training, and the effort required to obtain my pay. If I feel that I am not being offered an appropriate amount, I don't take the job. It is no one's fault but the employee's own that they are paid a wage that they FEEL is unfair.
Safety concerns do fall under OSHA and if a union finds something unsafe, this is who they report it to. Save your dues, cut out the middleman, and report unsafe workplaces yourself! You are protected under various laws if you are a "Whistle blower" against the company that you work for. It is really common sense that if something is unsafe, don't do it. No one is FORCING the employees. Last I checked we still live in a free state. If you report that it is unsafe and nothing is done, contact an attorney. There are lots standing by, waiting for the next class action lawsuit, that will eagerly assist you.
Your examples of workers propping open doors for ventilation or not reporting when safety devices are removed from equipment just sounds like people willfully endangering themselves and failing to take responsibility for their own actions. Grow a backbone and stand up for yourself. If you can read (which I am assuming that non-union workers are as capable of doing as union workers are) that you are working with dangerous materials and see that they are not being handled appropriately, DO SOMETHING!
All that unions do today are remove the sense of responsibility for one's self and replace it with a phone number to call if someone asks you to do anything that might sound productive. It is not that unions create a safe workplace, it is that by paying dues, people BELIEVE they are being protected and are in a safe environment. We have laws already that ensure the workplace is safe.a I live in Arizona, a LOVELY right to work state, and I have never been "forced" to do something unsafe. There is no clause here, or anywhere else for that matter, that forces a person to take workers comp. If, when hired, you sign a mandatory arbitration agreement, you are agreeing to give up your rights to litigate in a court of law, without first pursuing that company's arbitration agreement. It is in writing, you are asked to read it, and sign if you agree. But here is a dirty little secret, THESE ARE ALL OVER IN UNIONIZED JOBS TOO! The LAST thing a union wants is someone to publicly sue a company that they are supposed to be keeping safe! Most arbitration hearings require that a union rep. be present too!
So, while I am sorry to hear that you hurt yourself at work, it is only your fault that you never pursued the issue any further. Even a union boss would tell you that. And one last thing, workers comp. is an insurance that your employer provides, not a "law" that you are forced to work under. Next time you decide to rail against something, make sure that: A. you know what the hell you are talking about and B. you bring at least 2 brain cells to rub against each other. You may need them when you are forced to speak for yourself.
Unions
You are absolutely right. Charlie Bryan, District 100 IAM President, stated many times that he didn’t care if it killed Eastern Airlines, he would not negotiate or compromise. How prophetic (pathetic) he was. When the union members walked out, they damaged as much equipment and aircraft as they could. Service vehicles and tugs were sabotaged. Computers and shop equipment were destroyed. Even aircraft were purposely damaged. These are the same people that scream “safety” when they negotiate. Horse crap. They are nothing but thugs and criminals.
Unions and Intimidation
It will be interesting to see if AG office looks into this or even Democratic Party will set up inquiry - BUT that may be wishful thinking given the past record. Union and Obama will break USA unless the voting population wakes up and votes Obama and Democrats out of office. Decision voters face in 2012 is which of the two evil we want. This is a nation of free enterprise and freedom.
I agree with remarks Nana makes.
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It's spooky how clevre some ppl are. Thanks!
unions
How can anyone defend the unions any longer.....The big bully tatics, intimadation of the working men and woman, strong arming of politicians it's sickening, and has to stop!!!! The Tax payer has had enough of there mis-guided direction.
I agree
I could'nt agree more!! There has been an attack on this country for decades an the biggest assault has been on our schools.I remember reading a quote from a once socialist leader "GIVE ME YOUR CHILDREN FOR ONE GENERATION AND I WILL HAVE YOUR COUNTRY" Guess what is happening folks!!!!
RE: 'quote from...'
?And who may I ask is that 'once socialist leader' > ? Was that Nikita ?
`;o(-
And who may I ask is that 'once socialist leader'was it Nikita
It wasn't a communist who gave that quote. It was a top official in the catholic church. I don't remember who, Ignatius De Loyola or some such like him.
communist quote
so maybe he is the communist!
My first job out of highschool in 1959 was at
a company that made luggage in Denver, CO. The owner had an open door policy on his office. Workers could walk in at any time and talk directly with him. It was a big plant on South Broadway and employed, IIRC, several hundred workers. Every Xmas he would divide the company profits as bonuses among workers based on years employment and position. The supervisor in my section had an 8th grade education but had a quick mind and thought up many useful solutions to production problems, which is why he was made a supervisor over one, then several production lines.
Across the street was a rubber company, unionized. A couple of months after I started working at the luggage company protesters started picketing the luggage company, claiming worker abuse. From where I worked on the loading dock I could see where the protesters were coming from ... the rubber company across the street! What I couldn't see were the union members who applied for jobs at the luggage company, but I knew something was up when a group of new employees started grumbling and making accusations of "abuse and unfair treatment" and created a clandestine "group" under the leadership of a certain individual.
Eventually the rumors and accusations were enough to cause an election, which the union lost. Every year the process would begin again, ending in another election, with the union slowly gaining votes. I left before they were voted in but friends told me the environment changed radically, and it wasn't a pleasent place to work anymore. The open door to the owner's office was replaced by a "grievance" filed with the area union steward, who "represented" you from then on. You might as well have been a potted plant. Bonuses to line workers ceased and union dues dropped their wages by 2% or more. Union stewards and higher ups were except from layoffs until everyone else in an area or division, regardless of seniority, had been let go. They were also had to be the first to get rehired. It became the classic "worker's paradise", in the old USSR sense. Union dues were spent supporting policies and politics the workers didn't subscribe to.
The owner sold out and retired. Originally noted for the excellent design and quality of construction, the luggage became a parody of what it once was, following in the footsteps of the Detroit auto makers.
Watching first hand how unions operated and seeing the before and after effects of unionization, the whole episode has stayed with me. Later, as a teacher at a K-12 school in the 1970's, I had to join the NEA, and for 9 years was voted as the negotiator for the teachers in talks with the school board. It wasn't the local school board that was the greatest threat against the teachers, it was the NEA, and their attempts to force teachers and school boards to accept socialist teaching materials and agendas. The teachers were used as pawns as school boards tried to keep mil levies down and the NEA tried to force them to accept "Education 2000" goals, 25 years before they were targeted to become "progressive standards" of education. Time as shown that both the school boards and the teachers lost, but the biggest losers were our kids, who have been progressively dumbed down and now rank #1 internationally in "self esteem" but in the mid 30's in math and science, below even third world countries that have only slate and chalk as their teaching materials.
Unions
Unions. I worked for a union for thirty-five years in a right-to-work state so I did not have to belong to that union. I am sorry I ever gave a single dollar to that union.
So why did I do it? I did it because it seemed like the right thing to do. The union convinces everyone that if it weren't for them, you would not have the wages and benefits from the company that you have. It makes sense that if that is true (and I'm not saying that it isn't) you should be a member of that union. I even went on strike for several weeks in the eighties and walked the picket line. However, I was not your typical union "thug" though union thugs were around. There was an employee who did cross the line and worked during the strike and that person, a woman, was openly harassed and chased down by union people as she drove a company vehicle in her position who caused her much emotional turmoil, not to mention that a union thug slashed the tires on her company owned vehicle too. She was even battered for years after that and labeled a "scab" as is typical. I didn't like those tactics and still don't. I am a Christian and it just isn't right to treat others that way. But it was a mob mentality.
Working as union member, another thing the whole union thing brings to the table at a business is slower work performance based on an attitude of "why should I work harder if I cannot get a raise for doing so?" In my position, all workers, both union and non-union, with the same job title, were paid the same wage. There was no incentive to work harder because the union always protected the "lazy" worker in the face of discipline or possible firing due to a lack of performance. I felt that was wrong too.
Unions will insist that without them though, the "people" would be paid much less and not have the same benefits. As this might often be true, it isn't always the case. There are greedy business owners and corporations in this world, but there are those who are more fair to their workers as the luggage company mentioned elsewhere in this blog. But the unions tear down any trust between the workers and management and/or the owners. The unions force the business into a "us vs them" mentality. The union causes some workers to feel animosity towards those they work for and those who are not union members. And, as I mentioned earlier, God help those who are not in the union in the case of a right-to-work state.
Earlier I mentioned a three-week strike I went out on. I didn't agree with that strike because I didn't think it would garner us, the workers, more wages or money, at least not a substantial amount of either. In the end, it didn't work. Oh we got our raise and our increased benefits all right, but after being out on strike for three weeks, the company saved enough in wages to give us what they offered us in the first place and still saved money in the end. The fact that this happened in a right-to-work state will be criticized by union people and they will say that was why the strike failed. That because the non-union folks continued to work and/or because union members crossed the picket lines to work, that ruined it for the rest of us. That would be false. Management worked the jobs in our stead. There were few non-union folks there and most of those went on strike with us because they didn't want to face the repercussions by the union and their thugs during the strike and after the strike ended and all were back at work again.
After the strike ended and we all returned to work, there was a young fellow who I believe was never in the union but who worked during the strike. He said he had no choice, that he had bills to pay and that he needed his wages. He was a nice "kid" and I liked the guy. I tried to befriend the guy after the strike too. But some of my union comrades didn't take kindly to my friendship towards this "scab" and made their feelings known to me. Fortunately, things eventually got back to normal and everyone's emotions calmed and we all went back to work. However, for those who crossed the picket line, whether union members or not, their lives were never the same. They had to continue to endure criticism and open hostility (although much calmer in strength) but never the same as the rest of us. It was sad really to witness that. And all because of the union and their thuggish attitude.
Unions
I am in basically unfamiliar territory here, other than having held a minor union official position in a major union. I must agree, that for the most part, unions have outgrown their usefulness and purpose. However, there are two sides to this coin, one which is very prevalent in right to work states! SAFETY!
Yes, union workers do enjoy more benefits, and in most cases a higher wage than their non-union counterparts. Putting aside benefits, mostly rolled into wages, or kept separately, in right-to-work states, i.e., Kansas, there are many companies and corporations with non-union workers, that are FORCED to do non-safe tasks, some of which that could be fatal, and with absolutely no regard for that/those employees well-being! With most of these companies, profit and productivity are their only concerns with little or no regard for employees!
In many cases, a strawboss (usually illiterate, but with a brownnose of achievment) assigns a task that has great risks to one's health and well being, even to the point of causing a fatality.
Examples, some heavy equipment when being worked upon, in union shops, safety procedures such as locking out an electrical relays box by a supervisor, or person doing the repair mainenance, so that the equipment could not be activated while repairs are in progress.
While these procedures may fall under the protection of OSHA, they are totally disregarded in many instances in a non-union shop! You say this can't happen with a governmental agency writing the rules and over-seeing compliance, think again!
This happens all the time on a regular basis, in non-union shops. Safety appliances are removed from operating machines to facilitate production, only to be quickly reinstated upon advanced notice of a few days, or in some cases several hours, that OSHA will be conducting an inspection of workplace machinery.
Remember, we, or you, are dealing with the government and its regulations. The DOJ is a good example of this with their gun running schemes now being investigated. However, if in a UNION shop, the worker has a measure of protection whereby a worker CANNOT BE FORCED to do an unsafe task! Note: Advanced notice of an inspection in union shops is usually initiated by the union. Whereas, OSHA conveniently (politically?) advises the company of the date and time when an inspection will be held so they can PREPARE in advance!
In another example, a company/corporation that I won't name, but is located in Kansas and Nebraska, which makes hospital/medical supplies along with other non-related products, had a silk screening department that used dangerous chemicals, which stated on the 55 gallon storage drums to use ONLY WITH ADEQUATE VENTILATION. This company's idea of adequate ventilation was to have a standard entrance door blocked open in the warm months, or cracked adjar about 12 inches in the cold months, with total disregard for the safety and well being of its employees!
To protest this workplace environment for lack of safety would give said employee a stern warning to employee(s) to work as the company had provided, in the specified workplace, or draw your pay and look for another job!
Since these unscrupulous companies usually set up shop in highly economically depressed rural areas, where the wage is minimum as stated by law (only because the government states that this poverty wage must be paid, with a lower wage unacceptable), workers desperate for employment to put some bread on the table risk their safety, well being, and death on a daily basis.
These examples, and many others that can be attributed to a right-to-work state and non-union shop are the ONLY points still made for the usefulness of having union protection! I can produce facts to back up my statements. Another thing about a right-to-work state, Kansas in example, because of not having been involved in, or researched other such states, Kansas is the RTW state that I can cite from experience. In Kansas, non-union workers are FORCED to accept workman's compensation, WITHOUT the right to litigation in the event of injury or death! In my case, working at the factory noted, I sustained an injury to my arm about 20 years ago through NO FAULT of my own. Other than drawing disability compensation for about two months, and after being released to return to my employment, I attended a hearing before a judge to assess the value of my injury for compensation purposes. I was awarded a 3% disability rating, but still, 20 years later, I only have partial use and movement of that arm, along with cronic pain. My award from the judge hearing that case was a settlement of less than $1,000. In my case, that award has been spread out over 20 years and how many more years I manage to inhale oxygen, still enduring the pain and disability which gets worse with each passing year!
Kansas Workman's Compensation is geared to protect the company, not for providing a safety net for employees forced to work under these laws! With this, I rest my case on the value of unions and drawbacks of Right-to-Work states...Kansas Kahuna
Re: Unions
You know, I was in a union too when I was young. And when our union went on strike, the union took us aside and explained how unions work. As they did so, I realized that their scheme couldn't possibly work. If they got everything they wanted, they would literally drive the company out of business. The claim that unions 'protect' workers from 'greedy corporations' is pure BUNK. If a company 'forces' you to work dangerous jobs, they are opening themselves up for lawsuits which can potentially break them. And ANYONE can use a camera phone to document the removal of safety lockout devices and other safety equipment. I don't buy the lie that unions protect anyone anymore. They're not needed, and because they play partisan politics with members' money - without considering THEIR wishes - they're not wanted. --Turingschild
Unions
I want to thank you for your comments. It is a testimony from somebody who's been there and can tell the rest exactly what is the difference between working in union free environment and union shops.
Thank you!,
Maggie
Union
I agree with You 100%.I try to not buy any product with a Union made label,as usually it is of poorer quality.
Unionization
If one reads the history of Chrysler, in the beginning the workers were not controlled by the unions. Just like the luggage company, they were paid higher wages and received bonuses for their contributions to the organization. When the unions stepped in, the "it's not my job" mentality came into play. Team work, cooperation, innovation, and organizational citizenship of trust seems to vanish. The union shops loose competitive advantage over foreign shops where labor costs are cheaper. With the passing of federal laws protecting workers: Title VII CIvil Rights Act of 1964, and other legislation to protect employees, and the minimum wage law, what do we need unions for? I for one will not join a union if I can help it. Why should I pay a stranger my hard earned dollars so that they can contribute to political candidates that do not share my political views? The union was one of the causes of failure for Crysler and GM (Government Motors)which caused the taxpayer to fund their bailout because of their inneficiency. Unions should be abolished because they suck out the worker's wages and prevent them from making their own decisions. The only people that unions benefit is the union bosses that get paid by hard working Americans and bring no value to the world.
nurses right to work with out union interference
i believe the unions have ruined any hope of being powerful again
with what they have been doing the past few months. i belonged to the union in 1952 untill they turned over a bus in front of the rotunda building in dearborn mi. they have over the years been nothin but a bunch of thugs. what the did over the last four years is a reminder of there disfunctional attitude. better out of america and in to an other co.
Unions
I have great respect for those two nurses and I am right with them! The unions have to go! They have ruined every big industry that built this country into the greatest country on earth. This is documented. Ship building industry gone! Steel industry gone! Auto industry close to be gone! Enough said?
These two nurses make me
These two nurses make me proud of serving as an RN for 35 years.
Patients first....is my motto.
I am now retired but miss taking care of people.
Well Done Ladies!
Well done Ladies! I only wish I could say that to you face to face and have the honor of shaking your hand. Not only have unions way out lasted their usefulness in America they are now and have been for a while a detriment to the American way of life. BHO is a prime example, thanks unions for this idiot.
Back to these 3 nurses who put their patients first and foremost knowing they would have to deal with the after math from their co-works after the strike. Especially being a 3 year cancer survivor, not clear yet but fighting had and we have it stalled right now. I applaud their fortitude and beliefs that the patients come first. I've seen first hand what nurses have to deal with (3 very major surgeries with 35-40 day hospital stays recovering). They are the backbone of the health care industry.
Yet again well done especially because you work at a childrens' hospital and little kids don't understand all this stupid, grown up, political BS. They just know "My nurse didn't come to see me today" and that could be scary for little kids.
Unions
There was a time many years ago when unions performed a vital function. However those days are long gone. Now all they do is support the "bosses" with big paychecks as well as the hidden agenda of the communist party.
It's time we put a stop to this by saying enough is enough!
We're with you ladies!
drftrapani.blogspot.com
unions
Ditto! Unions performed a needed function in the early twentieth century. They gave workers a fighting chance at fair wages and health insurance. The robber barons of the day were exploiting the people. But their time has come and gone. Now all they do is financially break companies--then everyone is out a job.
Unions...
You are absolutely correct...the unions have outlived their usefulness and have become way too powerful. I am a nurse and when I was living in Hawaii I refused to join the union because I don't believe nurses should strike and leave their patients without care. The union is so powerful there that they were able to extract forced union dues from my paycheck even though I wasn't a union member. I had enough of these bullying tactics and moved to a state on the mainland that does not have a nurses' union. I miss my home in Hawaii and wish that I could be living there still, however, I will never return there to work again as long as the unions still call the shots.
My experience and my knowledge
As my user name shows, I am Deaf.
What it doesn't show is this: In 1971, I was stricken with meningitis and lost my hearing. In 1974, 1997 and 1999, I had medical problems - caused by the earlier bout, with meningitis and, had the medical personnel gone on strike, while their union bosses demanded things they really didn't need, I don't know how I'd have survived through four comas, four brain surgeries and a host of other problems.
These ladies have taken the Hypocratic Oath and the union wants to make that a hypocritic oath, so the union can stay in business.
It's bad enough that Obama, et al, in Washington, desire to decide, whose medical problems are worth spending money on, but, when you add the unions, where they are on the level with the crybabies, in professional sports, it addes an humongous problem!!
Nurses
I'm glad to see that people are thinking of other people and helping them. Way to go girls. It's time everyone make that decision on their own whether to join a union or not. People are sick and tired of the same old union "thuggery".
union
WHEN THEY CAME TO THE HOSPITAL WHERE I WORKED MANY YEARS AGO TO GET THE NURSES TO VOTE TO JOIN, I THANK MY LORD THAT ONLY TWO WANTED TO JOIN AND I WASN'T ONE OF THEM. I WENT INTO NURSING TO TAKE CARE OF THE PATIENTS, IT SURE WASN'T FOR THE MONEY, I WAS MAKING THE WHOLE AMOUNT OF $250.00 A MONTH.IT WAS JUST A SMALL COMMUNITY HOSPITAL AND I LOVED EVERY MINUTE I WORKED. THERE WERE TIME I WOULD HAVE TO PULL 16 HOUR SHIFTS BUT IT WAS OK WITH MY FAMILY AND I KNEW I WAS HELPING PEOPLE THAT COULD NOT CARE FOR THEM SELVES. THAT IS WHAT MATTER TO ME.....
Thank you
Bobbie,
From November, 1997, until April, 1999, I was in and out of the neurosurgery ward of the hospital and the nurses became some of the best friends I'll ever have.
The fact that one of them would come by, just to say hello, every time she saw I'd been re-admitted, made her a lifelong friend and, the ones, who took care of me, when I was re-learning to walk and when I was having problems with a shunt that had a bad valve, made the fact that my family didn't seem to care, worthwhile.
I will never forget these people and have even used some of the things we discussed in a book I am writing about a cop, who is shot and paralyzed in the line of duty.
Like you said, I feel the world needs more nurses, who work because they have a calling and not for a paycheck.
unions
We need a few more docs like that, nowadays, too! I lost my profession trying to care for patients with chronic intractable pain. I ended up losing my career for "caring too much"!!
Unions
ALL unions are controlled by organized crime. The sooner people realize this, the better off the entire nation will be. Union bosses make BIG MONEY from forcing people to join unions.
Unions
ALL unions are controlled by organized crime. The sooner people realize this, the better off the entire nation will be. Union bosses make BIG MONEY from forcing people to join unions.
Unions
ALL unions are controlled by organized crime. The sooner people realize this, the better off the entire nation will be. Union bosses make BIG MONEY from forcing people to join unions.
Unions
Way to go! The nurses that fought back and told the union where to stick it, did the right thing. There was a time, 30 years or so ago when unions might have had some value but today I simply do not see a reason to have them. Tell Obama and his croanies to take a hike!
unions
I agree with your thoughts that unions are not always good, and I can see how you may think that they are no longer needed, but do without them for a while and see if they aren't needed again! What is needed is reform, not to do away with them.
Human nature is such that they are needed for the protection of everyone. Granted they tend to always protect the worst of people, I dealt with that for years myself, but when the people of the union (members)do the right thing, as in deal with the problem themselves, things will eventually right themselves.
Unions
I live and work in Texas, a right to work state. Most industries here are not unionized and employees tend to make a higher living wage than many other states. Additionally companies tend to be more profitable. Even without unions there is not abuse of employees by employers or visa versa. With the civil liberties we now enjoy that are protected and enforced by law, along with social media, the need for unions to "protect" the employee is not necessary. Unions are a waste of resources, time, money, talent, and leadership that could be better utilized to create value to the economy, rather than handicapping companies and their staff. Unions are antiquated.
Unions
I live and work in Texas, a right to work state. Most industries here are not unionized and employees tend to make a higher living wage than many other states. Additionally companies tend to be more profitable. Even without unions there is not abuse of employees by employers or visa versa. With the civil liberties we now enjoy that are protected and enforced by law, along with social media, the need for unions to "protect" the employee is not necessary. Unions are a waste of resources, time, money, talent, and leadership that could be better utilized to create value to the economy, rather than handicapping companies and their staff. Unions are antiquated.
Need for Union's
I rember when union's got started, and yes they were needed. Although isn't this a free country? The way that our government is going I wonder. Obama backs the unions as the unions backed him when he ran for office. Tell me just one thing that the government controles that isn't going broak! We should beable to vote wheather we want into a union or not. Look at Wesconsin the Democrats supported by the unions. They can't even do their jobs that they were elected to do. UNIONS Baaa.
Need fo Unions
I can understand why you are against unions--just check your gramner and spelling. You must have had non-union teachers!
Typical.. If you can't
Typical.. If you can't attack the message, attack the messenger...
Unions
Unions once served a great purpose. They were local, dedicated to the worker's problems and controlled by local people with just a loose connection to some overall structure which offered little more than planning. That all changed in the late 1940's and 1950's, and a lot of the good in the unions disappeared as the "National" organizers took control. Suddenly people in Mississippi were required to go on strike, not because THEY had a problem with their company, but because some different company in another State as far away as Ohio or Pennsylvania, often in an entirely different industry was causing problems for their workers, or maybe just for the union itself. That's the point where I separate myself from them.
Now unions are national and becoming international. They're BIG BUSINESS, and it's their OWN business that concerns them, along with their political agenda, while their workers are simply their source of revenue, a private army of demonstrators used to gum up the works whenever some company won't give in to their demands, which are often unreasonable. I'm sorry but the exposure of today's unions for who and what they really are, which is nothing more than a mob-like crime syndicate is more than I can swallow.
No thanks, no union, not now and not ever...
God bless you strong women,
God bless you strong women, and know you are in my prayers to continue the good and righteous fight. May God give you all the ability to care for your precious patients as if you were not few, but many. May He send host from Heaven to help you accomplish all that your patients need, and protect you from those that greed for power.
God bless you strong women,
God bless you strong women, and know you are in my prayers to continue the good and righteous fight. May God give you all the ability to care for your precious patients as if you were not few, but many. May He send host from Heaven to help you accomplish all that your patients need, and protect you from those that greed for power.
Minn Nurses
I have been receiving your e-mails for some time. This is the first time you seem to make any sense at all. I cannot say "keep up the good work", but congratulations on doing the good work once.