Isn't freedom swell.

I was talking to a young guy tonight who is in the building trades. For some of you that are not in Unions, this means he is relatively high paid. In fact, as a plumber, he is very well paid. But folks that are Unionized building trades workers are nothing but high paid temporary workers; they have absolutely no security.

This young man has had his hours cut in half, which means his wages are cut in half. On top of that he has a house note (mortgage) that is about $200,000 more than his his house is worth and three children.

So his boss has been generous; or so it seems. He has not been laid off like many building trades workers, just working for half pay-----works one week and then is off the next. Of course, the boss is thinking of his interests too. If he were to lay him off and then work appears and he had to go to the hall and get another worker, he cannot be sure he would get one who is as dependable as this guy.

Next week is his week off so he agreed with his son's school to be a chaperone at the summer camp the boy is going to. The boy loved this idea, his dad being at camp with him, and the school needed the extra adults too.

So this was his week at work and on Tuesday he doubled checked with the boss. Is the situation still the same? Am I off next week? The reason being, I have planned to go to camp with my 12 year old and the teachers also are expecting me to help out.

"No problem" say the foreman and the superintendant of his job. You're off next week. We don't need you.

Then on Friday at 2,00pm. (today) an hour or so before he quits for the weekend. The boss tells him that they need him to work next week. What a disruption. His son is very saddened and depressed by this. The school is working with one adult less, and all around it is a horrible situation; two hours before the weekend his life changes.

He tells me that since the cutback in hours, the competition and tension between workers, and even friends at work has increased because everyone is terrified they might be laid off next and it has increased the competition to stay at work.

He has had to tell his son that he can't come next week after all. He has also had to tell the school, that were depending on him to come as another adult, that he will not be able to go; two days before the camp!!

I told him to ask his 12 year old: "Would you treat someone like this, son?" It is a great lesson for his son on how the bosses treat us and how the system works; on how rotten capitalism is. He would like to say to the boss that he can't work, he has other important commitments to his family and the school that the boss is aware of anyway, but, there is the old issue of supply and demand. Unemployment is high, there are some 150 people unemployed in his Union hall, and taking such a stand would almost certainly mean he would be laid off; the bosses have the upper hand right now and they know it. The problem is that the boss could lay him off anyway. They always lie. No boss in his right mind would say, "I only need you for Monday and Tuesday and then I'll have to let you go."

Isn't freedom swell!

The other thing that bothers him is his Union. Where the hell are the Union leaders? If the Business Agents, Union officials and others who all make a good living from the dues Union members pay were treated like this; there would be a revolt.

There is no doubt in my mind that there are some serious explosions ahead.