The American Spectator

Joe| 11.2.09 @ 1:47PM

Unions have long out live there usefulness to society and should go the way of the dinasour. They are more a road block to productivity then and benefit.

Daniel| 11.2.09 @ 10:49PM

The runaway Unions have destroyed a number of industries in America. They have destroyed Mining, Steel, Auto, Garment etc. They have depleted and placed whole communities into jobless Poverty. Currently, they are forcing Boeing to relocate from the Non Right to Work of Washington State to other States in order to survive and compete with Air Bus(EAD), Brazil, Canada, Japan and China. Yes, runaway Unions combined with their cohorts of runaway Big Government are proving that they are more than enough to destroy America.

Sir Guido Cabrone, LC| 11.3.09 @ 1:48PM

In my own opinion, while the concept of union representation may still have some relevence in the modern labor market, the actuality of the modern union structure does not.

Current unions as structured have created a privileged class of professional union managers, who have do not now, and have never in their lives, done the jobs that the union members they supposedly represent perform on a daily basis. How many rivets has the President of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers bucked?
How many miles has Jim Hoffa of the Teamsters Union logged in an 18 wheeler?

Unions SHOULD exist to deal with labor/management problems that lie between the levels of "things management/workers do that just irritate each other, but that can be solved with a little heart to heart talk, and "actions on the part of one or the other that are legally actionable from a criminal or civil standpoint."

When that very same union becomes involved in the day to day operation of the corporation from the standpoint being an actual shareholder in the company, then a conflict of interest comes into play. The "rank and file" of the union can no longer be confident that the "union management" can have their best interests at heart, since that self-same union management is in a position to profit directly from the company, as well as having the ability to directly pluck money from the members paychecks to fund their own lavish lifestyles.

The only way to combat this is for the union membership to return the system to it's original foundations.

1) The union leadership should be promoted from the shop floor, for a limited term, and then returned to the same position previously occupied, with no loss of job seniority.

2) Union leadership should be compensated to no greater extent than the highest paid member of the work force.

3) All expenses incurred by the leadership of the union should be listed and explained, in detail, to every member of the union, in writing, on a monthly basis.

4) Any action taken by any member of a union against an individual who leaves a union or acts in a manner contrary to the wishes of that union should be actionable against the entirety of the union.

Until these steps, (particularly the first three), or ones similar, are taken, then unions will continue to become less and less the representatives of their members, and more and more the representatives of their leadership, and, as such, mere non-beneficial parasites on the working people they are supposed to be helping.

(disclosure: I am not now, nor have I ever been, a member of a union or other similar organization, nor have participated in, or worked in opposition to, a strike or other union organized work stoppage.)

Chris Mosquera| 11.3.09 @ 8:09PM

In rely to Sir Guido Cabrone, LC:

You are absolutely correct!!

Organized labor is NOT about helping the workers whom they legally represent.
Organized labor is all about MONEY and POLITICAL POWER.

Collectively, labor unions derive over $10 billion per year income from dues from their membership, who are essentially their 'clients.'
This income has been heavily invested in political power. Very little actually goes to directly helping the union membership.

Labor unions have failed to evolve as the economic forces have changed. The internet, technology, outsourcing, downsizing are some of the factors that unions are not able to address.

Organized labor has spent close to a BILLION dollars during this election cycle. The Employee Free Choice Act, when passed, is organized labors reward for electing officials who will support the union agenda. Unions are about politics, power and money. The union membership is just their meal ticket to pay for all this.

Organized Labor is the only legal cartel we have in the United States! Ponder that thought....

As an interesting note, the UAW is part owner of the new and improved auto industry. This is like having the fox guarding the chicken coop!

It was the UAW and related unions, that created wage rates vastly above economic reality, and made American made cars,so expensive and inferior to foreign cars. Union work rules are archiac and designed to protect jobs, and decrease productivity. They are NOT designed to be competitive with the rest of the world.

Yes, "Organized Labor IS A Decaying Business Model," and will soon go the way of the dinosaurs or dodo birds!

Theses animals failed to change with the climatic conditions of the world, just as unions have failed to become vaule added partners to businessess. The labor - versus - management mentality will not work in the information society.

Their time has past, and history will record unions as the one century wonders!

For more information on organized labor, please read: "Is Organized Labor A Decaying Business Model?" available from: http://www.outskirtspress.com/chrismosquera or on line from Amazon or Barnes and Noble.

(Note: Chris Mosquera is a Labor Union Expert, who has spent many years on the inside of various labor unions, and authored: "Is Organized Labor A Decaying Business Model?")

Let's keep the conversation flowing....

Thank you,
Chris Mosquera
email: chrismosquera@gmail.com
http://www.outskirtspress.com/chrismosquera

Barbara Davis| 11.5.09 @ 10:58AM

Is there any way that someone on your staff can find out in the stimilus package ($787 Billion) where a billion is set up to form a 13 member committee-rumored to already be in force-that will be connected to medical records and will be able to respond to doctors as they decide which treatment to prescribe and if they don't follow the advice given by this committee, they will be fined.? I listened to a surgeon on a news program last night who's researched the bill and has found this hidden that we don't know about concerning the new health care legislation..It is all about control and probably union...Please respond.

www.us-bapeoutlet.com| 4.2.10 @ 10:24PM

www.us-bapeoutlet.com

www.juicyihandbag.com| 4.3.10 @ 7:43AM

Juicy couture handbags are among the brands which have gained a great repute over a longer period of time.The quality and material used for their manufacturing is up to the mark and has no match. The most attractive thing of JC purses are their reasonable prices, which makes www.juicyihandbag.com them liked by people belonging to all classes. These are easy to be purchased from online retail stores. You have the advantage to check the available variety on internet and then buy the item of your choice through the credit card. It would be good to make a phone call at the company number before making the transaction, in order to confirm the authentication of selected retailer.

www.in-watch.com| 4.3.10 @ 7:49AM

Being a proud owner of a watch is a wondrous thing that many take for granted. No one remembers back when things were simple and they had to call "time and temperature" to get an accurate time . Now certain devices run on their own with no batteries what so ever and some get updates from satellites so that the time is always perfect.Looking back on all of the famous inventors or the wrist watch, it makes you happy to know that the item located on your wrist is truly a miracle and wonder of the world. From the first watch with its round face to the tiny ring watches that sit delicately on your finger, they are truly a piece of history.Dating back to the 1800s up until now, watches have constantly have been moving forward and keeping us in time with the rest of the world. If you are looking to find out more about the history of the watch
www.in-watch.com then you will want to look to the founder's of this wondrous invention. It is amazing to see how the watch has evolved and the parts get smaller with each new watch on the market. There is a watch for every lifestyle and wardrobe so you can be stylish or simple anytime of the day or night.