• SerLava [he/him]@hexbear.net
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    5 days ago

    Sorry I don’t have the source or much background to back this up, but I saw a video of some union organizers talking about how the NLRB is much more important for the types of workers who don’t have inherent economic power such as baristas, grocery store workers, and so on. They said that for people who want to organize more economically powerful workers (scarce skillsets or experience etc.), the NLRB could just as often get in the way of things.

    Does anyone know what I’m referring to, or can anyone back that up?

    • ratboy [they/them]@hexbear.netOP
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      3 days ago

      Hmm I don’t really know about that. I think regardless of union representation, within the NLRB or not, the boss is gonna do what the boss is gonna do. I think laborers with specialized skill sets will always have more power. Service workers who are represented by a union under the NLRB often still get laid off, replaced, retaliated against regardless of what the “rules” are, and in my experience are restrained by their local because if your local is yellow they will go to any lengths to keep you from striking or being militant and they might even hurt you at the bargaining table. Even with the NLRB you can only strike for two reasons, the vote takes months to process, work stoppages are not allowed, etc. So I think it can be equally harmful to any worker, but that all depends on the unions willingness to get rowdy.

      I fear the NLRB being dismantled because most workers in the US are not at a stage where they are willing to put the work in to organize and be militant. They want all that work done for them, so I feel like unions would all but dissolve without the apparatus we have now. People will just shrug their shoulders when theirs goes away, so at least with the shitty system we have now there is some sort of shield and protections if your local cares about you, anyway