the strikes are coming - i mean the olympics are coming

[SpongeG]

after news of YVR two more are coming possibly

Hertz strike vote points to more potential delays for Vancouver travelers

PCL strike could be felt during Olympics

[wrenegade]

I hate unions. I hate them so much.

The nurses and paramedics are about the only ones have sympathy for.

[zivan56]

Unions around here are a joke. Having worked for 2 crown corporations, I can confidently say that unions only protect those who have good connections with organizers and loudmouths. You have no incentives to do your job better/work harder, since it really doesn't matter or help you. Someone should create realistic union which actually protect everyone equally and fairly (from employer abuse, fair working conditions, normal vacation/pay).

I know of someone who got "fired" due to downsizing and decided to "bump" someone lower down in a random other department. They get paid the same as before,about 3x more than everyone else doing that exact same job and yet they are clueless as to what to do (make lots of mistakes, only work at about 20% of speed of others causing loss of money and late payments which result in interest). They take at least 1 sick day a week to "study for exams" and study during working hours at their desk. Likewise, they take about 3 hour long lunches and leave/come randomly. On top of that, they are rude and hostile towards others, and blame random people for their own mistakes.
Nothing can be done to fire them, as the union decided to teach the company "a lesson" for downsizing in the first place.
Oh, and a model employee lost their job because they were of lower "seniority" for this idiot to take their place. What a joke...and the company actually lost money due to this person being paid the same as before and due to tons of money lost due mistakes on their part.

[Yume-sama]

Who didn't see this coming? Unions are so big in this province, and the Olympics are a cash cow, allowing them to hold the "man" hostage!

[sacrifice333]

How stupid and short-sighted can people be?!

I have no problem with the right to organize... but really?!

[osirisboy]

i wish we could just fire people who want to strike and hire new people. They should be fuckin lucky that they even have jobs. I HATE UNIONS and I especially hate those idiotic union people that think they deserve the fuckin world. ugh unions make me so frustrated!!

[Metro-One]

The Union hating around here makes me laugh out loud!

Without unions our labour standards would still be akin to that of the third world, and we all know how prospurous those nations are!

When will people learn that the healthiest societies are those with very large middle classes.

Here is a quick sample, many unions demand dental care for their workers and families. This allows many children to grow up having healthy oral care, that otherwise likely would not (or at least to the same extent). if unions did not exist, then neither would these dental benefits, which would mean far less visits to the dentist, which would mean far less dentist would be needed, which would mean less jobs!

Also, having higher wages for the average worker = more taxes for the government (to build our trains, roads, hospitals, etc...) and more money in the average consumer's pocket. This allows them to do such activities as skiing and buying commercial goods. Therefore creating more jobs again, fuelling the economy!

Are unions perfect? No, but do they serve a much needed purpose? Yes. To hear comments such as this, "i wish we could just fire people who want to strike and hire new people. They should be fuckin lucky that they even have jobs. I HATE UNIONS and I especially hate those idiotic union people that think they deserve the fuckin world. ugh unions make me so frustrated!!" is very scary!

Also, as I said before, labour relations is a two way street, so sometimes it is the company's fault for strike action, or a mix of both the company and union, not always "just the union!" which it seems most people on this forum seem to believe.

Is it possible that one or more of these three unions offering strike notice is just being greedy? Yes. But is it also possible that one or more of these unions offering strike notice are in the right? Yes.

please research these cases before you draw the conclusion that all unions are greedy and wrong.

[nova9]

Here here Metro-one. I totally agree with you.

[BCPhil]

Afterall, it was unions that caused the Montreal Olympic Stadium to go over budget. They started building it then the unions went on strike. The stadium wasn't even finished as originally planned until the roof was installed over a year after the Olympics were held.

At least we didn't have that here and our venues, roads, and transit systems are in place.

And the two unions in question are private companies involved in free market enterprise. I'm not a huge supporter of unions in government services (as the whole theory of unions is to transfer wealth from the owner to the workers, but in the case of government, the people are the owners, both rich and poor, and we are held hostage by their whims because there is no competition for their market), but when employees feel they are being treated unfairly in the open market a strike is a valid option. It's business afterall, and if the unions demands are impossible to meet, either the union has to back down or the company folds putting everyone out of work. The governments coffers always seem bottomless by employees, thus there is no compromise or reason, just greed. The government can't close up shop, it can't close all the schools, shut down buses, or demolish hospitals, so it typically has to meet the demands, or create tension by legislating back to work laws. It's an unfair situation.

[wrenegade]

Uh, metro-one, many companies can provide extended health plans to their employees (including dental) without having unions. Even so, just because you don't have a dental plan does not mean you should forego going to the dentist. That's just plain dumb.