Found that years ago if there was to be a strike over conditions or safety that it was the members involved who would conduct a down tools meeting and try to thrash the issue out with the relevent person in charge. Most times these disputes where resolved real quick and everyone was happy. If it could not be resolved then a snap strike would happen before the union itself got involved to come to some sort of agreement. This resulted in quite a few stop work meetings or short strikes because it was handled by the workers involved and union participation was sort for legal clarification if needed. They also where answerable to us to try for higher wages and can not ever think of a time that we where out on strike for that in the union that I was in. Now if the workers want to strike they have to get the union involved from the start and have it sanctioned which in turn makes the whole situation a shambles of outright war between managment and union officials with the worker not getting a look in any more. It is that type of union that I defend not the beurocratic ones of today that. No we had it right years ago if there was a problem we sorted it out then and there. Now it goes to court and becomes national news with so many wanna be big noters trying to make a name for themselves to the extent that have forgotten that the bloke on the end of that broom is his boss. So yes have a go at those idiots but remember that it was from the sweat of workers that the union movement started not some bloody uni kid.
That's the way the mop flops.
My thanks to Brian for this site.
