# Whats the point of having the extravagant international side of our union?



## TGGT (Oct 28, 2012)

The IBEW has had a long history of being less democratic since its inception and has only gotten worse. They have become so pro-business that they brush legitimate member issues under the rug. I had a legit grievance, first one I ever filed, and my LU apparently thinks being fired for being "insubordinate" to CW's is not in violation of the CBA, among other things.

The local here barely qualifies as a union in my opinion, if you hold it to that standard you are only going to be disappointed. A temp agency with good insurance is more appropriate.

People like you and me are shunned, they only want koolaid drinking nuthugging members they plaster meaningless IBEW stickers on everything. Seriously, contractors don't respect the union down here because it hasn't done anything to earn it.

At my last foreman's meeting they cited lack of knowledge of the CBA as an issue. They said the hall didn't even have answers to some simple questions. It's truly sad that a contractor is expressing concern over the hall's lack of knowledge of the contract.

Right to work just means the union can be held accountable to its members or risk having to represent them for free. I have no sympathy for weak a$$ unions that take members money and then turns its back on them.

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## Wiresmith (Feb 9, 2013)

TGGT said:


> ......
> Right to work just means the union can be held accountable to its members or risk having to represent them for free. I have no sympathy for weak a$$ unions that take members money and then turns its back on them.
> 
> Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk


thanks,

sometimes arguing with other people on here about this stuff makes me feel like i'm on an island.

i don't think we are going to get better while denying our problems.


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## Chops146 (Aug 26, 2018)

It's legacy of the Reid-McNulty split (Reid-Murphy split). LU 1245 has some good history on this at their website. You might want to check out Electricians for a Democratic Union.


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## Wiresmith (Feb 9, 2013)

Chops146 said:


> It's legacy of the Reid-McNulty split (Reid-Murphy split). LU 1245 has some good history on this at their website. You might want to check out Electricians for a Democratic Union.


http://ibew1245.com/chapter-25-house-divided/

thanks, good read.


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## joebanana (Dec 21, 2010)

That's a good question. I guess, we have to have someplace to send all those working dues.


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## Wiresmith (Feb 9, 2013)

joebanana said:


> That's a good question. I guess, we have to have someplace to send all those working dues.


true that, i guess if we got to keep it we wouldn't have to work as much and the world would be a much darker place. yep, it's for the greater good.


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## Switched (Dec 23, 2012)

You should start another union to represent you to the union.


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## Wiresmith (Feb 9, 2013)

Switched said:


> You should start another union to represent you to the union.


or just ween other members off the kool-aid


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## Switched (Dec 23, 2012)

Wiresmith said:


> or just ween other members off the kool-aid


Yeah, good luck!

The Cherry flavor is too good!:biggrin:


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## splatz (May 23, 2015)

Unions are, of course, essentially political entities. To some extend necessarily; maybe more so than they should be; but that's the reality. 

Politics is basically a quid pro quo game, I scratch your back, you scratch mine. Aside from pet projects and the ever popular envelopes of money, what can you trade? 

One of the very favorite currencies is jobs. Unions create a lot of jobs for the same reason that government does. 

At the courthouse, the elected assholes that run the show create a lot of do-nothing jobs. They place their influential supporters' nitwit kids, drunken brother in laws, etc. etc. in these jobs. While they're at it, of course they create a few jobs for their own pain in the ass relatives, but you have to be a lot more careful with that. The people they hire are of course expected to be ardent political supporters, but do little between elections, other than antagonize non-supporters. 

Same way at the union, you have to kiss the ass of politicians that intervene on your behalf, you have to find a desk for the dumbasses in their life. And of course find jobs for some of your own dumbasses. 

So that's nepotism. Now that's not everyone at either the courthouse or the union office, there are some poor suckers that have to do the actual work while these dullards take up space. But that's why all the deadwood.


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