Linemans union needed, and I don't mean IBEW!!

[Dugg3]

Hope IBEW is doing more for you than they are for us. Might be all right if your a clerk.

[TEX]

blasphemy



Main Entry: blas·phe·my
Pronunciation: 'blas-f&-mE
Function: noun
Inflected Form(s): plural -mies
1 a : the act of insulting or showing contempt or lack of reverence for God b : the act of claiming the attributes of deity
2 : irreverence toward something considered sacred or inviolable

You've gone and done it now Dugg3!! They'll cast us asunder! The National already told us that we were tak'n too much time at the coffee shop for God's sake. They'll be a call'n down light'nin and the fires from HELL!!!!

[OLE' SORE KNEES]

It is sad compared to yesteryear,it seems all they care about now is membership dues flowing in to the big boys in the union and not much else, everytime we needed help with contract issues they were'nt around and after it was settled they appeared again,almost magic..nothing like what Henry Miller founded the IBEW for ............the workingman not the white collars,too much into politics and not enough into lineman type issues.

[TEX]

We all have experienced the same thing Knees, no matter what part of the country we're from. Come and "make a showing" at negotiations, then we get it stuffed up our ass anyway. Too many skirts voting on OUR issues. We need representation and we're not getting it. Did you see the ass reaming the International gave us all for (apparently) not working hard enough. They sent their message out on the net and the suppervisors had us watch it. Can you imagine that? I'll be retired soon and the young bucks had better grab the bull by the horns and get rid of these leeches by consolidating the brothers throughout the country and returning THEIR union to its roots. JUST LINEMEN.

[jerseyslave]

AMEN...


This along with a journeyman licence as skilled labor.

[snoman]

I think we all have seen the tape from Pres. Hill, what a blow ! Here at GREED, management took precious time during their over scheduled work day (which we are accused of only working 6 hrs. out of 8 hrs.) to proudly show the work force this example of how one side is rubbing the back of the other, if you know what I mean !

[bambam]

Glad to see it not just the 369 in Ky thats getting screwed. At talks we were told that we should be happy to have a job and sign the contract.

So the company forked out a signing bonus and all the old ones jumped on it, instead of fightin for retirement insurance, something they deserved. Then to top it off the inside women voted and low and behold it was passed, and my dues went up.

Imagine that

[Line Cowboy]

Im not sure how to take this.... As a young and impressionable apprentice i canonly wonder how it will be when i retire(if that will even happen). what if anything can the young up and comers do to get it back to Brother Miller's dream? :confused:

[jcorb]

A Union is only as good as its members. Guys are riding on the coattails of the hard work our forefathers did and have gotten fat, dumb, and happy. They have a boat, pick-up and a 12 pack in the fridge and don't think they need to get up and go to a meeting, work to get our labor candidate elected, attend steward training or research an issue to help the Union win better benefits.

The company isn't going to give you anything and less likely to give up any of their power willingly. If you can't take it, you won't get it and if you can't keep it you won't hang on to what you have. They are coming after our pensions, retiree medical, paid holidays and vacations and anything else they think they can get. Go work non-Union for a company like Red Simpson and see what you get.

Getting awful tired of people blaming others for their lack of motivation. You can manage the situation or let the situation manage you. How about helping the Union by pitching in and working to make things better instead of bad-mouthing our brothers like a bunch of ignorant do-nothings?

Work safe and work Union, its the only thing between us and the rest of the working poor in the world.

[Line Cowboy]

jcorb I am working non-union and know exactly what you're talkin about. No bennefits **** pay, no per diem nata. they dont care if it gets done safe or right, just get it done. im only an apprentice. and i think that because i worked union and know how its supposed to go they are tryin to run me off. anyway the only thing that I wish was different is the way a guy has to get into the app. program the hoops they make a guy jump through just to get in are rediculous. I love the union and this trade they both have been good to me all my life. Now im trying to start my own little family and cant get into the program. so what choice do I have ? Go to work for the RATS

[jcorb]

Newbie, thank you for your reply. I don't have anything against anyone working non-union, you have to eat and feed your family. I put it on myself to do a better job organizing and view you all as potential members and brothers. I will not waste my time with those who will not listen but will go out of my way to help someone who asks.

The best way I know to get on an apprentice program is to try and get into a Utility any way you can, I started in the mail room at $3.25 an hour, moved to grunt, then apprentice (joined the Union) and they busted my chops but good from the word go and no one from the Union even came to try to explain anything to me. I kept thinking of the long term benefits involved (medical, pension, 401k, scholarships, etc) and put up with it all and didn't say a word until I topped out then payback was a *****.

Another way is to contact a Union hall in your area (look in the yellow pages under 'labor union') and ask the business manager or his/her rep how to get in (even an indoor local) and get some experience under your belt. Most construction locals and Utilities have hiring preference for anyone with even a little bit of construction experience, then work your way into a lineman apprenticeship.

If everyone in our trade stuck together and protected one another we could run the show on a nation wide scale and dictate terms and conditions of employment for everyone. Remember,once you have them by the balls their hearts and minds are sure to follow. Good luck to you and be safe.

[Line Cowboy]

jcorb, I dont want to work non-union any more..... I drug today because it just wasn't safe. I dont want to mention who . but they dont ground right and so on. I ve applied with two programs, but like i say the hoops a guy has to jump through are almost impossible. I will succede however and I will give back to this trade what it will give to me. (it has already given a great deal) Thank you jcorb for your kind words and if you have any advice please let me know. :)

[jcorb]

What part of the country are you in? Plenty of Union work in Arizona and California, Local 769 in Phoenix is begging for guys.

[Line Cowboy]

I live in colorado right now But i applied with Southwestern Line JATC I have an interview in AZ, as well as TX, and KS how is that local to work out of?

[jcorb]

Kansas is good, Talk to Paul Lira, Busniess Manager for the whole state, he's a good man and can direct you to the best place, good luck.

[Line Cowboy]

Ive been talking to one of the KS instructors. He said the same . how do I get a hold of that BA? BE safe brother

[jcorb]

Here ya go Newbie, good luck and be safe.

http://ibew.org/IBEW/directory/SearchDirectory/detailLU.asp?LocalUnion=304

[Line Cowboy]

Thank You man stay SAFE brother

[57hand]

I have to agree with jcorb. You guys sound like a bunch of whiny *****es. How involved are you in your local. Do you get to the jobsite and stand around and ***** for 2 hours while you drink coffee, or do you represent. YOU are the union, not your reps. WE determine our fate. This whole "what's the union doing for me" attitude is pretty ignorant. Get up off your asses and stand up for what you believe in. Honest 8 for an honest pay makes a big difference.

[Orgnizdlbr]

I have to agree with jcorb. You guys sound like a bunch of whiny *****es. How involved are you in your local. Do you get to the jobsite and stand around and ***** for 2 hours while you drink coffee, or do you represent. YOU are the union, not your reps. WE determine our fate. This whole "what's the union doing for me" attitude is pretty ignorant. Get up off your asses and stand up for what you believe in. Honest 8 for an honest pay makes a big difference.

Amen Brother!

[CenterPointEX]

To borrow a phrase from JFK,
"Ask not, 'What can this country do for me?', but ask, 'What can I do for this country' "...


Unionize it Brother!

[Handy man]

I live in colorado right now But i applied with Southwestern Line JATC I have an interview in AZ, as well as TX, and KS how is that local to work out of?

Newbie, Mt States is also looking for apprentices in most of its areas.
Contact:
MOUNTAIN STATES LINE CONSTRUCTORS JATC
Address: 7001 SOUTH 900 EAST SUITE 240
MIDVALE, UT 84047-1718
Phone: (801)562-2929
Fax: (801)566-8610
Email: mslcat@qwest.net
Point of Contact: SK Pelch
Training Director

[Dugg3]

Originally Posted by 57hand
I have to agree with jcorb. You guys sound like a bunch of whiny *****es. How involved are you in your local. Do you get to the jobsite and stand around and ***** for 2 hours while you drink coffee, or do you represent. YOU are the union, not your reps. WE determine our fate. This whole "what's the union doing for me" attitude is pretty ignorant. Get up off your asses and stand up for what you believe in. Honest 8 for an honest pay makes a big difference.
__________________________________________________ _______________

Well what you speak of above is ok if your not out numbered by office workers,such as call center employees, engineering clerks, billing clerks, ect. Then top it off with union officials telling you their sending out a survey to see what the membership would like to see negotiated. Only to find out their negotiating your contract without telling you,(being told we voted them in so their making decisions for us) with little quirks for the above mentioned so the contract gets passed. Has anyone ever heard of a contract being settled 4 months before the old contract is up.Then have these same union officials re-elected through a vote for their positions for which no numbers were given out as to how much they won by. There seems to be alot of under handed dealings going on, and be told they don't wanna file a grievance because we won't win it.(Hmmm, Union in bed with the company)

As for the 8 for 8 I believe all the people I work with ( as in lineman )do that and sometimes more.
I guess all i'm trying to say here is with a LINEMANS union we could have more control over our future.

[jcorb]

Hey Dugg3, get on with the formation of your lineman's Union and let us know how it goes. Our Local had folks that we felt didn't represent our interests and we worked our butts off to get them unelected, that is how the system works. Our 'linemans local' was started by a clerk from the payroll department in 1938 and everything I have I owe to the brothers and sisters that have fought since then, whether they were clerks, power plant operators, or truck drivers, all of which has had a leadership role in our local at one time or another.

You can work to divide each other, which is what management wants, or you can work to bring people together. By the way, their company operation would choke up faster with the clerks holding up the paperwork than if all the lineman went on strike, they can always get rats to do our work.

Work safe, be safe.

[Line Cowboy]

They might get the rats to do the work ........ but thet'll need us (union hands) to come back and do it right. :cool:

[dirtdobber]

in the hell are you trying to say that because hes a rat he aint worth a crap.you might want to reconcider your thaughts if you were not in this line of work who do you think would be re-energizing your neighborhood next storm just count the RAT s.o.bs. working there ass off while some not all of you union s.o.bs. suk up the GOV. money!

[Line Cowboy]

Hey man i'm not tryin to take anything from anybody... just speekin from a bad experience man... Sory if I offended

[Trampbag]

If anyone is interested in a new union this article, appearing in Transmission and Distribution Magazine in September 2001 will clearly indicate what we as linemen are up against. It is called “Super Contractors” and will tell who is who in the line contractor world. You’ll be surprised who you are dealing with when working for what you think is a competitive contractor.


http://tdworld.com/mag/power_emerging_super_contractors/index.html



Trampbag@hotmail.com

[CenterPointEX]

Ben Bosco, EIS vice president of sales, anticipates utilities that outsource infrastructure functions, including engineering, O&M, construction and supply-chain, will typically see cost reductions in the order of 10% to 20%. But Bosco believes that even greater savings could be obtained if a utility were to embrace the asset owner model already tested in New Zealand and Australia, where the utility would enter into a comprehensive outsourcing agreement that would include back office as well as field operations. Bosco predicts that EIS, with a strong utility process expertise and the ability to execute work in the field could deliver savings in the order of 25% to 35%.

Competing with Exelon is Quanta Services, a company backed by utility heavyweights UtiliCorp United and Enron. Quanta first opened its doors in 1997, providing infrastructure services to the electric and telecom industries. The company has expanded to provide services to gas, water and cable companies. With an annual growth rate of 22%, Quanta now has annual revenues in excess of US$1 billion per year with a significant presence in 37 states.

Quanta expects the trend toward outsourcing will gain momentum as utilities work to repair and enhance their infrastructure, better manage resources and reduce costs to remain competitive in a deregulated market.

North Houston Pole Line and Digco is Quantas foothold in Houston...

[Trampbag]

Utilicorp has become Aquila (http://www.aquila.com/ ) and has interests in USA, New Zealand, Canada Gemany, Norway and the UK. Henkels does business in the US, Canada, Brazil among others. Quanta Services has numerous companies under it’s cover in Canada and the USA and likely other countries, and certainly bids jobs around the world using it many faceted names they DBA (do business as), likewise the other Super Contractors mentioned in the article. Exelon with it’s many subsidiaries in both the utility, including ComEd, and contractor industries. The MYR Group of companies include L.E.Myers, Harlan, South WestConstruction, Hawkeye and Sturgen. And lets not forget Enron, which is still alive and kicking, Sempra, Duke and all the other financial juggernaut energy companies that only consider linemen an expense necessary to do business. They will do, and do, anything necessary to reduce expenses.

Any new union would have to be international, USA, Canada and Caribbean inclusive with very close affiliation with the other unions representing linemen in other parts of the world, UK, New Zealand and Australia included for sure, as well as European electrical unions. Utilities and contractors today are internationally owned and do business on an international basis.

The local autonomy of the IBEW, in particular, is hampering bargaining and representation of its members because the Locals officials are very narrow minded and protectionist. The IO has little input into a Local except where the IBEW constitution is concerned. The IO is little more than a lobby group to Federal and State/Provincial governments. This ensures most of the power in the IBEW is within the Local.

Linemen would be better represented by a union like the British AEEU which appoints local officials and centralises the strength and decision making on a national scale. Elected officers are at the central offices.

Adopting the good points from the IBEW and the AEEU and close affiliation with other unions around the world representing others in our trade would serve us well.

[BigClive]

Linemen would be better represented by a union like the British AEEU which appoints local officials and centralises the strength and decision making on a national scale. Elected officers are at the central offices.


AEEU is now within Amicus.

http://www.amicustheunion.org/

[Trampbag]

Thanks BigClive,

It was the EETPU when I worked the UK. They had some good ideas, some not so good. They sure gave me good representation. Better than some of the LU’s in the IBEW.

Is Amicus the same structure as the EETPU or AEEU? Do the have the deer herd still??

I found the British electrical union very in tune with issues in Europe and in North America.

I find the IBEW hardly, if at all, interested in anything outside their front door. Local Union halls in the IBEW at times compete openly with one another for work and members. Trust between some LUs is non-existent.

[CHICAGO HAND.]

April 16, 2006
Off the Shelf
The Spectacle of Labor at the Trough
By ROGER LOWENSTEIN
ONE of the most revealing, and funniest, scenes in this exposé of union corruption concerns the Mason Tenders District Council of New York, which represents workers in some of the grittiest jobs in construction. The members make good money — $30 to $43 an hour, plus benefits. But in one job site after another in the 1980's, they were replaced by cheap unorganized labor. Where was the union?

At least until recently, says Robert Fitch in "Solidarity for Sale: How Corruption Destroyed the Labor Movement and Undermined America's Promise" (PublicAffairs, $28.50), it was controlled by crime families like the Genoveses and Gambinos. The "mobbed up" bosses were extorting payoffs from building companies in return for letting them hire nonunion labor.

Here's the funny part. The racket was so good, Mr. Fitch recounts, that some of the union bosses set up their own construction companies. Check out the conversation that occurred in Little Italy in 1989 (and captured on an F.B.I. wiretap) between an earnest, ordinary laborer identified as Carl, who tried to help the cause by reporting a nonunion company to labor officials, and his union field representative, one Al Soussi:

Carl: I give him the name of the company. He goes, "No, it's not union, but we're gonna get it unionized in a couple of days."

Al: What was the name of the company?

Carl: D-E-P, something like that.

Al: D-E-P's my company, [expletive]. What're you crazy?

Carl: No.

Al: Yeah, that's my company. I got the shake on 'em. What're you interferin' it?

Carl: No, I called —

Al: (Yelling) Yeah, yeah, you called the delegate on me!

Carl: How do I know?

Al: (Shouting) Why didn't you keep your [expletive] mouth shut?

According to Mr. Fitch, the American labor movement is shot through with rackets, corruption and union officials who are brazenly enriching themselves while utterly ignoring the plight of their members. In addition to numerous examples of mob infiltration, Mr. Fitch also cites a laundry list of cases of garden-variety theft. At District Council 37, a New York City local representing low-paid city employees, one official, Albert A. Diop, billed the union for his maid service and limousine. "Everyone takes a little from the kitty," Mr. Diop had offered, in 1983, as a defense for a fellow union executive, some years before his own conviction for stealing.

A particularly heartless example, from the late 1960's, involved the giveaway of Thanksgiving turkeys to hard-pressed union families. The birds had been pumped full of water to increase their weight, and dozens of union chiefs had bought them (with union funds) at inflated prices, then pocketed kickbacks. Such shenanigans seem to have been regularly exposed, but as the author documents, corrupt behavior has been notoriously hard to eradicate. In particular, the struggle to truly reform the Teamsters persisted long after Jimmy Hoffa.

The saddest feature of this saga of sweetheart contracts, rigged elections, pension raids and protection deals is the yawning gap it all exposes between union executives and the rank and file. One executive, whose salary came from dues paid by "low-wage baggers and checkers," pocketed $547,000 a year in compensation.

Mr. Fitch recounts many such examples. We have come to expect shameless avarice from corporate executives, but it would appear that labor bosses are no better.

The author, who nourishes a nostalgia for the labor movement's early days, says the leadership of the last 50 years tolerated and encouraged a racketlike labor structure.

Ever since the merger of two labor groups created the A.F.L.-C.I.O. in the 1950's, he contends, unions have been more concerned with protecting turfs and keeping out rivals than expanding their base.

"Under the U.S. fiefdom model, the point is to find a rich territory and occupy it," he writes. "Little incentive exists for the occupiers to extend the benefits of the union to low-paid outsiders."

Mr. Fitch clearly prefers the European model, in which trade unions have used the political process to win widespread social benefits. By contrast, he says, American unions have been mostly out for themselves. Though the A.F.L.-C.I.O. has contributed millions to the Democratic Party, the marriage has hardly borne the political fruit — national health care, for instance — that workers might want. A result has been steady shrinkage. Today, only 8 percent of private-sector workers carry union cards.

Mr. Fitch plays down the familiar explanation for the decline of unions — that in a global economy in which American workers compete against Indians and Chinese, Haitians and Hondurans, unions have lost their bargaining power. Rather, he says, union corruption "explains why the American labor movement fares so poorly in the vital tasks unions are designed to perform."

I have two problems with this. Mr. Fitch admiringly cites the rise of the welfare state in Europe, with its laws mandating minimum vacation time and shortened workweeks. He does not cite the cost that Europe has paid in higher unemployment, lower growth and social stagnation. Does he really think that Americans — even American workers — envy the French?

Second, although Mr. Fitch repeatedly asserts that corruption matters, he doesn't convince us that even honest unions could reverse the tide of shrinking membership. As he seems to concede toward the end, the choice facing unions today is either higher wages or more members — not both.

Finally, though Mr. Fitch's passion for his subject is admirable, the examples flow too fast, the chronology is lost in a jumble of forward- and backward-glancing flashes, and the prose is simply overripe. In one pagelong sequence, Mr. Fitch compares American labor bosses to Russian czars, Somali warlords, Afghan warlords and Gothic invaders in "the seventh-century Merovingian state." Just what I had been thinking.

LATER, he frets that while there are "dozens of books in print about Egypt's pyramids," there is not a single one about the temples that used to serve as union meeting halls in the United States. He doesn't really want to compare the bricklayers union to the pharaohs, does he?

No matter. For anyone who still clings to an idealistic vision of the labor movement, or is interested in some novel prescriptions for reform, I would skip the pyramids and try this book.

[BigClive]

Thanks BigClive,

It was the EETPU when I worked the UK. They had some good ideas, some not so good. They sure gave me good representation. Better than some of the LU’s in the IBEW.

Is Amicus the same structure as the EETPU or AEEU? Do the have the deer herd still??


I couldn't tell you much about how AMICUS works these days. When I was an apprentice I joined the EETPU and the dues were deducted from my payslip. I remained in the union until about 1991 when I chose to go self employed and do the 714 thing. It didn't seem to go down too well with the union and I got the cold shoulder.

I don't trust any union or construction industry organisation to be independent these days. There are little tell tale clues that everythings being manipulated behind the scenes. Even the self promoting "Inspection council" is a racket run for the protection of the larger contractors.

The red tape in the electrical industry is getting to the point of making even the simplest task a chore. I've currently got about 1000 bucks of red tape hoops to jump through to update my electricians card for another three years.

I should think that to any skilled tradesman in the UK these days emmigration to another country must be looking very tempting.

[Im2cocky]

:mad: Stay the heck over there if you like it so much....

[Line Cowboy]

:mad: Stay the heck over there if you like it so much....
Easy bud Thats not the way to win friends and influience people

[jcorb]

Hey Trampbag: Get on with the formation of your new Union and let us know how it goes. With the IBEW I made $100k last year with $250K in my 401k, full medical and dental and pension with retirement medical. If you can do better with your proposed Union, do it.

[Trampbag]

Unfortunately I no longer have the energy to fight the system any more. I did for about 20 years.

Linemen are highly paid workers, as you point out. Also they are in very short supply and you just cannot wave a wand and make someone a lineman, it takes a lot time to get a well rounded journeyman tradesman. Any union representing the buying power of a group like Jm Lm should have the best medical, pensions and representation money can buy.

We presently don’t have any of it, except possibly in isolated cases. I certainly never experienced the top shelf benefits from any union I worked under, certainly never from the IBEW. I have paid HIGH dues though. I have paid as much as 6% in some LUs and at 100K that would be $6,000 per year. If 100 linehands were to pay that to some lawyer group you’d get great representation!

What are you getting presently for your dues? You probably get some lineman, or electrician, or operator improving his golf swing and making more money than you, and getting all expenses paid while doing so.

If your representation were hired, and could be fired, by you, you would see a very different situation than you presently have. Have you ever tried to get rid of a Business Manager in the IBEW? Fat chance.

Does anyone remember J. J. Barry? He built a mansion in Maryland using non-union electricians and still got in during the next election.

[Dugg3]

Couldn't have said it better myself. I just wonder how much longer it is going to take for the up and coming lineman to stand up for themselves. At the rate we're going in another 10 yrs (if not sooner) they'll be wondering how they lost everything. (things that were fought for by previous lineman) I'm so tired of hearing "well that's the trend across the country" by the union. Hopefully i'll be able to retire soon. Just wish they made wood powered generators.

[Lizzy Borden]

Our locals are almost bankrupt.......cant blame it all on IBEW. I saw first hand how everyone folded when the chips were down. We stayed on strike 3 1/2 months......they did not get hit with one good storm. We came back and got hit with a real bad storm would have brought them to their knees.

I really felt if we stayed out a little longer we may have done better with our contract. We gave up almost everything. School bus drivers have better health care. Ours is almost obsolete.

Our contract is durring the winter months when the building slows up. All hell breaks loose when the ground thaws.

We should have held out. The company pretty much knows we have a bunch of people running scared of strike and the next contract. I am sure they will cut more and offer crumbs next time.

[slaplineman]

ill tell you one thing i would much rather have my union, the wages and life that it built for me than not have it at all !!!!!!

[OLE' SORE KNEES]

ill tell you one thing i would much rather have my union, the wages and life that it built for me than not have it at all !!!!!!

Amen Brother, I have *****ed and complained before myself about things,but have been provided a good living putting my kids thru college,toys for them and me too,etc,
I am thankful for the Union,had it not been there. Power companies and contracters would have run over us .

[Boomer gone soft]

Chicago,

Lowenstein isn't exactly a middle of the road author. He is quite to the right and is a huge fan of Warren Buffet.

He isn't exactly interested in the welfare of the middle class.

He is pro-big business.

I doubt many of his statements of "fact" and don't see any parallels between the the examples he gives of the construction unions and what is and has been happening with the IBEW.



April 16, 2006
Off the Shelf
The Spectacle of Labor at the Trough
By ROGER LOWENSTEIN
ONE of the most revealing, and funniest, scenes in this exposé of union corruption concerns the Mason Tenders District Council of New York, which represents workers in some of the grittiest jobs in construction. The members make good money — $30 to $43 an hour, plus benefits. But in one job site after another in the 1980's, they were replaced by cheap unorganized labor. Where was the union?

At least until recently, says Robert Fitch in "Solidarity for Sale: How Corruption Destroyed the Labor Movement and Undermined America's Promise" (PublicAffairs, $28.50), it was controlled by crime families like the Genoveses and Gambinos. The "mobbed up" bosses were extorting payoffs from building companies in return for letting them hire nonunion labor.

Here's the funny part. The racket was so good, Mr. Fitch recounts, that some of the union bosses set up their own construction companies. Check out the conversation that occurred in Little Italy in 1989 (and captured on an F.B.I. wiretap) between an earnest, ordinary laborer identified as Carl, who tried to help the cause by reporting a nonunion company to labor officials, and his union field representative, one Al Soussi:

Carl: I give him the name of the company. He goes, "No, it's not union, but we're gonna get it unionized in a couple of days."

Al: What was the name of the company?

Carl: D-E-P, something like that.

Al: D-E-P's my company, [expletive]. What're you crazy?

Carl: No.

Al: Yeah, that's my company. I got the shake on 'em. What're you interferin' it?

Carl: No, I called —

Al: (Yelling) Yeah, yeah, you called the delegate on me!

Carl: How do I know?

Al: (Shouting) Why didn't you keep your [expletive] mouth shut?

According to Mr. Fitch, the American labor movement is shot through with rackets, corruption and union officials who are brazenly enriching themselves while utterly ignoring the plight of their members. In addition to numerous examples of mob infiltration, Mr. Fitch also cites a laundry list of cases of garden-variety theft. At District Council 37, a New York City local representing low-paid city employees, one official, Albert A. Diop, billed the union for his maid service and limousine. "Everyone takes a little from the kitty," Mr. Diop had offered, in 1983, as a defense for a fellow union executive, some years before his own conviction for stealing.

A particularly heartless example, from the late 1960's, involved the giveaway of Thanksgiving turkeys to hard-pressed union families. The birds had been pumped full of water to increase their weight, and dozens of union chiefs had bought them (with union funds) at inflated prices, then pocketed kickbacks. Such shenanigans seem to have been regularly exposed, but as the author documents, corrupt behavior has been notoriously hard to eradicate. In particular, the struggle to truly reform the Teamsters persisted long after Jimmy Hoffa.

The saddest feature of this saga of sweetheart contracts, rigged elections, pension raids and protection deals is the yawning gap it all exposes between union executives and the rank and file. One executive, whose salary came from dues paid by "low-wage baggers and checkers," pocketed $547,000 a year in compensation.

Mr. Fitch recounts many such examples. We have come to expect shameless avarice from corporate executives, but it would appear that labor bosses are no better.

The author, who nourishes a nostalgia for the labor movement's early days, says the leadership of the last 50 years tolerated and encouraged a racketlike labor structure.

Ever since the merger of two labor groups created the A.F.L.-C.I.O. in the 1950's, he contends, unions have been more concerned with protecting turfs and keeping out rivals than expanding their base.

"Under the U.S. fiefdom model, the point is to find a rich territory and occupy it," he writes. "Little incentive exists for the occupiers to extend the benefits of the union to low-paid outsiders."

Mr. Fitch clearly prefers the European model, in which trade unions have used the political process to win widespread social benefits. By contrast, he says, American unions have been mostly out for themselves. Though the A.F.L.-C.I.O. has contributed millions to the Democratic Party, the marriage has hardly borne the political fruit — national health care, for instance — that workers might want. A result has been steady shrinkage. Today, only 8 percent of private-sector workers carry union cards.

Mr. Fitch plays down the familiar explanation for the decline of unions — that in a global economy in which American workers compete against Indians and Chinese, Haitians and Hondurans, unions have lost their bargaining power. Rather, he says, union corruption "explains why the American labor movement fares so poorly in the vital tasks unions are designed to perform."

I have two problems with this. Mr. Fitch admiringly cites the rise of the welfare state in Europe, with its laws mandating minimum vacation time and shortened workweeks. He does not cite the cost that Europe has paid in higher unemployment, lower growth and social stagnation. Does he really think that Americans — even American workers — envy the French?

Second, although Mr. Fitch repeatedly asserts that corruption matters, he doesn't convince us that even honest unions could reverse the tide of shrinking membership. As he seems to concede toward the end, the choice facing unions today is either higher wages or more members — not both.

Finally, though Mr. Fitch's passion for his subject is admirable, the examples flow too fast, the chronology is lost in a jumble of forward- and backward-glancing flashes, and the prose is simply overripe. In one pagelong sequence, Mr. Fitch compares American labor bosses to Russian czars, Somali warlords, Afghan warlords and Gothic invaders in "the seventh-century Merovingian state." Just what I had been thinking.

LATER, he frets that while there are "dozens of books in print about Egypt's pyramids," there is not a single one about the temples that used to serve as union meeting halls in the United States. He doesn't really want to compare the bricklayers union to the pharaohs, does he?

No matter. For anyone who still clings to an idealistic vision of the labor movement, or is interested in some novel prescriptions for reform, I would skip the pyramids and try this book.

[Boomer gone soft]

A lineman's only union is a pipe dream that is dead on arrival.

1. This lineman's only union would not/could not have the clout of the IBEW. The IBEW has been around since 1891 and is THE recognized authority for labor in the electrical industry not only by management, utilities, and the government, but also by AFL-CIO, and all of those people who would have to agree to de-certify the IBEW (generation, sub-techs, meter-readers, etc.)

2. Given the hostility toward labor in American politics since Reagan, the IBEW has done one hell of good job for us not only in our individual localities, but in DC.

3. Rather than pissing and moaning and dreaming of a new union, we, as linemen, need to get involved and active with the one we have.....VOTE, SHOW-UP, VOLUNTEER, MAKE MEETINGS, MAKE PHONE CALLS, EDUCATE OURSELVES.

4. The IBEW is not "them". It's us. We need to own our part of the problem.

[Pootnaigle]

Bout all I can or will say about how things are right now is this........ Picture yourself working non union..... would your wages be higher?....... your benefits?.. working conditions?...... your retirement? Corporate America is who we work for my friend and make no misteak aout it They are not honorable people. What unions have gained in the past the members have sacrificed for........ when was the last time YOU made even a small sacrifice and attended a meeting? Or cast a knowledgable vote for your unions leadership? You have to not only vent your frustrations in front of that leadership but you hafta sit right in front of em EVERY month letting em Know you aint pleased with the way things are going. If that Union hall was filled every month with people demanding explanations Then leadership would be forced to do a better job of representation. In short we have only ourselves to blame. Being a union member is a HARD CORE kinda thing YOU hafta be in it for the betterment of every union member, and you hafta be at each and every meeting taking the leadership to task . Paying your dues and assesssments is not enough.
Ive personally seen an unjustly terminated employee get not only his job back but the backpay he missed due to the efforts of a union.

[tolex42]

I am amused by the "Labor Relations experts" who complain here about the IBEW, their Local Union and their contract. I met a lot of those guys who do all their *****ing behind line truck, in a barroom or anonymously online.

I would ask, have you ever volunteered to be on the negotiating committee. Probably you don't have the fortitude to sit across the table and look the boss' in the eyes and tell them how you really feel. If you think your union is letting you down, why don't you go to negotiating table next time. You're probably one of those guys who when the boss walks into the room you jump up and say "can I get you a cup of coffee boss".

The IBEW is made up of members from the rank-and-file. The Local Union officers are elected out of the workforce. Every IBEW Local Union officer I've ever met is trying to do their best to represent their brothers and sisters. It's a very difficult job. Stop *****ing and complaining and jump in to help make your union stronger.

[madcowboy33]

A Union is only as good as its members. Guys are riding on the coattails of the hard work our forefathers did and have gotten fat, dumb, and happy. They have a boat, pick-up and a 12 pack in the fridge and don't think they need to get up and go to a meeting, work to get our labor candidate elected, attend steward training or research an issue to help the Union win better benefits.

The company isn't going to give you anything and less likely to give up any of their power willingly. If you can't take it, you won't get it and if you can't keep it you won't hang on to what you have. They are coming after our pensions, retiree medical, paid holidays and vacations and anything else they think they can get. Go work non-Union for a company like Red Simpson and see what you get.

Getting awful tired of people blaming others for their lack of motivation. You can manage the situation or let the situation manage you. How about helping the Union by pitching in and working to make things better instead of bad-mouthing our brothers like a bunch of ignorant do-nothings?

Work safe and work Union, its the only thing between us and the rest of the working poor in the world.
Could'nt have said it better BROTHER!!!!!!!

[madcowboy33]

in the hell are you trying to say that because hes a rat he aint worth a crap.you might want to reconcider your thaughts if you were not in this line of work who do you think would be re-energizing your neighborhood next storm just count the RAT s.o.bs. working there ass off while some not all of you union s.o.bs. suk up the GOV. money!

I am going to say it RATS AIN'T WORTH A F$CK . You came to our storms and the work was shoddy and ya didnt really know what the hell you was doin. Are you a 6 month journeyman, Oh! wait you probably dont have a certificate!!! LINE MECHANIC

[Boomer gone soft]

I am amused by the "Labor Relations experts" who complain here about the IBEW, their Local Union and their contract. I met a lot of those guys who do all their *****ing behind line truck, in a barroom or anonymously online.

I would ask, have you ever volunteered to be on the negotiating committee. Probably you don't have the fortitude to sit across the table and look the boss' in the eyes and tell them how you really feel. If you think your union is letting you down, why don't you go to negotiating table next time. You're probably one of those guys who when the boss walks into the room you jump up and say "can I get you a cup of coffee boss".

The IBEW is made up of members from the rank-and-file. The Local Union officers are elected out of the workforce. Every IBEW Local Union officer I've ever met is trying to do their best to represent their brothers and sisters. It's a very difficult job. Stop *****ing and complaining and jump in to help make your union stronger.

Exactly right.

Opera non verba--DEEDS NOT WORDS.

Quit the *****ing and get active.