Welcome to c/news! Please read the Hexbear Code of Conduct and remember... we're all comrades here.
Rules:
-- PLEASE KEEP POST TITLES INFORMATIVE --
-- Overly editorialized titles, particularly if they link to opinion pieces, may get your post removed. --
-- All posts must include a link to their source. Screenshots are fine IF you include the link in the post body. --
-- If you are citing a twitter post as news please include not just the twitter.com in your links but also nitter.net (or another Nitter instance). There is also a Firefox extension that can redirect Twitter links to a Nitter instance: https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/libredirect/ or archive them as you would any other reactionary source using e.g. https://archive.today . Twitter screenshots still need to be sourced or they will be removed --
-- Mass tagging comm moderators across multiple posts like a broken markov chain bot will result in a comm ban--
-- Repeated consecutive posting of reactionary sources, fake news, misleading / outdated news, false alarms over ghoul deaths, and/or shitposts will result in a comm ban.--
-- Neglecting to use content warnings or NSFW when dealing with disturbing content will be removed until in compliance. Users who are consecutively reported due to failing to use content warnings or NSFW tags when commenting on or posting disturbing content will result in the user being banned. --
-- Using April 1st as an excuse to post fake headlines, like the resurrection of Kissinger while he is still fortunately dead, will result in the poster being thrown in the gamer gulag and be sentenced to play and beat trashy mobile games like 'Raid: Shadow Legends' in order to be rehabilitated back into general society. --
That would raise average wages to about $63 an hour from $39 an hour over the life of the contract.
The union and the port operators said in a statement that they would extend their master contract until Jan. 15, 2025 to return to the bargaining table to negotiate all outstanding issues.
https://xcancel.com/MorePerfectUS/status/1841973125996585431
I do hope they vote out their 
leadership since workers were allowed to cross the picketline to help load military weapons.
The typical American is unbelievably reactionary, I'd be shocked if the majority of the membership even mildly disapproved of assisting the burger reich.
A majority of Americans support suspending arms sales to Israel. I can’t imagine that’s lower among union members.
they may "disapprove" but Americans aren't gonna betray the troops yet. And if they did they wouldn't be able to handle the heat (the government would literally try to kill them). There's no solidarity with other nations or even other workers in other sectors in the US, they were just striking for themselves.
Is there any indication that they care? Or are we wishcasting about the I Love America Union
Ngl it's still kinda bittersweet since they still agreed to load military equipment. Just more chauvinism, but I'm wanting too much for burgereich workers to have solidarity with international workers.
Just more chauvinism, but I'm wanting too much for burgereich workers to have solidarity with international workers.
Yer not wanting too much... you just feel what abolitionists feel when the Missouri Compromise was made
Not quite sure why people here are that happy about it. If I understand this correctly then this isn’t even enough to cover current inflation, removes their right to strike for the next 6 years, has no hours-reduction, has no single payment to cover the past inflation. I don’t see how this is a win for workers. This seems like a huge win for the companies considering what else would have been possible.
Well, yeah, but I'd be pretty happy if that happened in my industry.
This seems like a huge win for the companies considering what else would have been possible.
To them it's a huge loss compared to what would've happened without the union - max 5% annual raises, if that.
has no single payment to cover the past inflation
That's like Netflix telling you "hey we didn't raise our prices enough to keep up with inflation, we'll now charge you for last 5 year's inflation in a single payment"
It won't fly because it wasn't in the original contract.
has no hours-reduction
Normally I'd agree with you that this sucks, but aren't they hourly? Hours reduction means pay reduction. If I was hourly, I'd want the ability to work more hours (AND obviously a higher hourly rate to begin with)
You're talking about this like this isn't a huge win for these workers, but that's just not true. Yeah there's been bad inflation, but minimum, mean and median wages have NOT increased nearly as fast as they should. Hell the minimum in the US has been unchanged for decades. And plenty of people still make minimum (or less in tipped jobs).
Now we just need more sectors to form unions, and strike successfully. In more countries than just the US. Here in EU we make less in tech than longshoremen do in the US whereas in the US, tech salaries are nearly uncapped. Unions could help. And obviously unions in the less well-paid industries are even more important.
To them it’s a huge loss compared to what would’ve happened without the union - max 5% annual raises, if that.
This is a ridiculous and liberal lesser-evilism. A pay rise below inflation is a pay cut. This is such an important point which trade unionists have been pushing since forever. We consistently see trade union leaders accepting pay cuts of this nature, against the will of rank and file unionised workers, when there is plenty of momentum for escalated strike action and an actual pay rise, with inflation, is entirely achievable. We absolutely need to be criticising the labour movement shooting itself in the foot.
That's like Netflix telling you "hey we didn't raise our prices enough to keep up with inflation, we'll now charge you for last 5 year's inflation in a single payment"
Who cares what these companies think is and isn't fair? They created this inflation for the past years, they pay for it. And besides that, why do workers need to adhere to a past contract in their current demands? Continuing the strike for a one-time inflation-payment would have been the right choice for the workers, so the union should have done so.
Normally I'd agree with you that this sucks, but aren't they hourly? Hours reduction means pay reduction. If I was hourly, I'd want the ability to work more hours (AND obviously a higher hourly rate to begin with)
Why does it need to be one or the other? That's what capitalists want you to think. Why can't it be an hour reduction and a pay increase together? That's something that would be great for everyone. Only increasing pay or only decreasing hours is always going to split workers based on their current economic standing. Doing both not only strengthens all the workers, it also positively affects their companionship.
Yeah there's been bad inflation, but minimum, mean and median wages have NOT increased nearly as fast as they should. Hell the minimum in the US has been unchanged for decades. And plenty of people still make minimum (or less in tipped jobs).
So because the minimum, mean and median wages have NOT increased nearly as fast as they should, we should… checks notes… not fight for better pay?
No job is keeping up with inflation, even union jobs
This is so funny because it seems like most recent strikes have only lasted like a single day before the company folds. Which is great. But it shows why they try so hard to prevent the strike in the first place and try to portray strikers negatively because once the strike is called, the company has already lost.
God damn 10% raises every year for 6 years? That's fucking sick.
It's 8% raise every year.
1.615^(1/6) ~ 1.083
ah falling short of inflation then
There won't be 8% inflation yearly for the following 6 years unless another extreme geopolitical event unfolds
Chuckling off stage right. Sounds like Israel.
There are decades where weeks happen, and there are weeks where decades happen. And the former means stagnation of purchase power and the latter means inflation lol
I think it's less likely a major geopolitical event DOESN'T happen
We're at that moment of history aren't we?
So I'm relying on more knowledgeable bears here, but this is basically a manifestation of unions without theory right?
Without state support unions will be assaulted by capitalistic mentalities and turn into gangs?
idk about state support. but yeah without bringing socialism in, there's nothing that makes unions directly fight for the working class as a whole, just for the interests of that segment of it. This strike could have had wider political implications, e.g. Maersk was one of the employers. The most extreme example is cop "unions" that actively fuck over the working class, but lots of unions sacrifice the rest of the class a little bit. For instance working people need public transit, Chicago's transit system has had a big operator shortage for several years, but the union made it really difficult to get a job as an operator (have to first do 1 year in an essentially unrelated menial role with few openings). Or you get Hoffa teamsters
That's a really good point. Lots to think about.
Yerp, instruments for maintaining the system overall while giving concessions when the tension gets too high
UNIONS WORK BABYYYYY
so they've stopped the strike in exchange for a promise of a contract next year? and the promised contract is an 8% yearly raise? idk about this one
This is a massive wage increase and a win for the union.
Going from 80k year to 130k could easily be the difference from scraping by to living comfortably if it’s a single income with kids.
Except, it isn't going from 80k to 130k instantly. It's going to 89k, then 96k and so on. Only reaching 130 by the very end of the 6th year. Which might be good if inflation behaves, but if things keep going badly (ie workers continue to get big raises) then the inflation managers at the fed will punish labour some more to make those wage increases meaningless just like they did to the wage gains from over the pandemic.
4% yearly raise after inflation. It's better than nothing, but I think the right thing to do is strike until you win a contract with all your demands. Helps prevent union leadership from becoming collaborationist. I don't know ILA internal politics
The I love America Union is throughly collaborationist, like every union in America
ez
Question: are union workers protected from layoffs? Do they get significant compensations in the event of a mass layoff that typically happen during a recession?
The Taft Hartley Act gives the president power to order striking workers in important industries back to work for 90 days.
Reagan infamously used this to force air traffic controllers back to work while firing thousands of them while they were on strike.
The only protection they have from layoffs are their own funds. Unions set aside money into strike funds to cover everyone's bills when they do have to strike.
What's interesting though is last week Biden straight up said he doesn't believe in Taft Hartley, which is a crazy thing for a president to say lol.
Nope lmao. Maybe you’ll get money if fired unlawfully, but no
That was fast