Verizon Strike - Local Impact

[FirNaTine 370]

Does this mean that IAFF firefighters wouldn't cross a Verizon picket line if one of the Verizon buildings were on fire?

Not if your life was being threatened. Just ask all those Depts. that were dispatched on m/a to Yonkers years ago when their members were striking.

[valhalla2481 2]

Not if your life was being threatened. Just ask all those Depts. that were dispatched on m/a to Yonkers years ago when their members were striking.

I remember that early 80's late 70's and we were one of teh departments asked to go and we refused out of respect for there contract we even made channel 7 news back then Maxine Black

[gamewell45 258]

as a proud retired member of cwalocal 1103 here in westchester i would like to remind everyone that 22years ago we went thru a nasty 18 week strike over these same issues two of my union brothers died on there respective picket line one from a heart attack and one who was stuck down by a scab and killed hopefully verizon wont kill anymore us for you people who know nothing about contractors they are blood suckers and do shoddy work they take there money and run in closing i would like to thanks the many other who have supported our picket lines together i know we will keep the middle class and get rid of the rich pigs who want to take it away

Amen Brother!

[gamewell45 258]

I hope you wore red today in Honor of Gerry and for everyones information he was deputy chief in Rockland County at the time of his passing I believe every Aug 15th is a sad day but today more so since we are on strike again on his anniversary

Every Thursday is Red Tee shirt day in Bro. Gerry's honor.

[JunebugKFD257 48]

I think maybe you read into my question a little too much. I was referring to my wife and I. We won't cross any picket line. As far as my job is concerned, honestly, I never given it that much thought.

[gamewell45 258]

It was a tragic accident. May Gerry Rest In Peace.

I had read they are bringing employees from other areas (Non-Union areas)in to work - I guess they will be called scabs too. I still fail to undertand why someone has to be in a union to know how to do a job or have any skill. This is an insult to those not in unions that are skilled workers of the middle class.

Labor unions are in place to improve the working conditions for employees; in some unions, training is an integral part of helping to become competent in your craft. There is no insult intended, just that those who are unionized are because they desire to have more control over their careers and terms and conditions of employment. Those who choose to work non-union are certainly within their rights; just that you go it alone and if you have an issue that comes up in the workplace or if the company decides to change the terms and conditions of your employment, you have no choice but to accept or quit.

Those of our non-union co-workers do not have a collective voice in the workplace; instead they serve at the pleasure of the company and have no guarantees in the workplace aside from a few watered down Federal and state laws, particularly in the private sector. If they decide that your too expensive and and lay you off and hire a younger more inexpensive employee your gone no matter how good you feel you were or if they decide to terminate your retirement or medical plans and leave you with no retirement/medical plans they can legally do it and I've seen that happen before.

As I mentioned prior in this thread, most if not all executives of corporations and/or company's have personal service agreements, which are labor contracts which spell out the terms and conditions of their employment such as benefits, pay, golden parachutes, stock options, perks, etc. Hey, these guys are not stupid, they want to protect their financial livelihood; so if management needs a contract, how come the average worker doesn't need one? Think about that for a few minutes. Would you buy a car or house without signing a contract? Why? to protect yourself financially. Labor contracts are the same thing in principal; its job security for the workers and it sets a standard of living conditions where the employee can enjoy a living wage and viable benefits package in return for supplying his/her labor to the business.

There's more to the Verizon strike then what you read in the papers; these union Brothers and Sisters are in the fight for their lives; Verizon is only telling you what they want you to hear. And no, I don't work for Verizon either but as a union brother, their issue is my issue and I know if my union had an issue, they'd be right there beside me helping.

Scabs are those who help to break strikes; its akin to kicking a man in the face while he's lying down and out in the dirt. They are an Anathema to every working class stiff in this country whether union or non-union; they help to ultimately lower working standards for all workers. I'd love for it to become law that each and every scab be forced to read John Steinbeck's Grapes of Wrath prior to crossing a picket line. I have no respect for scabs/replacement workers no matter who much they bluster they need work. They and their ilk are a blot on labor freedom in this country.

<end of rant>

[LTNRFD 266]

Not if your life was being threatened. Just ask all those Depts. that were dispatched on m/a to Yonkers years ago when their members were striking.

That's another politically union correct answer. The real life story is if you are one of the companies dispatched to a fire and you have to cross a picket line you will cross it, IAFF member or not. If the strikers interfere with the F.D. in any way then you let the P.D. handle the strikers and you go about your duties. As a firefighter you swore to protect all life and property. There was no exception clause to the oath you took. Now when you are off duty you can support any and all picket lines and the job can't say anything about it. As long as you stay within the bounds of the law.

If you refuse to do your duty and not cross a picket line you could find yourself on charges and losing time/pay. And maybe your job.

In the case of the Yonkers strike years ago, many of the career and combo department just outright refused (ahead of time) to respond to any call in Yonkers. This way it didn't put the IAFF members of the M/A departments in an awkward position. Lucky that there was no large scale emergencies that would have required the career departments to respond. If you are dispatched you must respond. When I say dispatched I mean that the chief or ranking officer of the department ordered his companies to respond. If you refuse you may be put on charges and may even lose your job.

[david sheeky 2]

Every Thursday is Red Tee shirt day in Bro. Gerry's honor.

yes 2481 i proudly wore my red today i hope you did too rest easy gerry ere going to beat them again like you always said united we stand

[valhalla2481 2]

yes 2481 i proudly wore my red today i hope you did too rest easy gerry ere going to beat them again like you always said united we stand

I have been wearing red almost every day definetely today

[valhalla2481 2]

I have been wearing red almost every day definetely today

what garage were you out of

[ny10570 745]

"After God had finished the rattlesnake, the toad, and the vampire, he had some awful substance left with which he made a scab. A scab is a two-legged animal with a corkscrew soul, a water brain, a combination backbone of jelly and glue. Where others have hearts, he carries a tumor of rotten principles. When a scab comes down the street, men turn their backs and Angels weep in Heaven, and the Devil shuts the gates of hell to keep him out." - Jack London

A scab is a strike breaker. Not a volley in paid community or a paid guy volunteering in another community. A scab is either a union employee who works in defiance of the strike or a worker hired during the strike to maintain productivity.

For all the evils associated with union workers; the garbage that can't be fired, the "union break", 1 guy digging and 5 guys watching, etc.. there are mountains of benefits that we would not have whether you're a union or non-union worker. Benefits gained in union jobs often later become industry standards and benefit all workers. Nearly every major protection and safety standard has a union backing against employer resistance. Absolutely unions ask for more than they probably 'deserve' or is feasible, but the employers aren't exactly jumping at the chance to increase employee compensation. So both sides negotiate down from their unrealistic demands to a palatable middle where no one is happy. If we don't stick together and try and get every penny we can it becomes a race to the bottom. Who is willing to work the longest, the hardest, and the fastest for the least amount of money.

For every union that has essentially priced themselves out of a job; UAW are the easiest example. There are dozens of others that recognized the coming problems and acted in concert with management to keep everyone working. This site has closely followed several, and one of the biggest was the construction unions in NYC at the start of the recession. As for the UAW, as much flack as they've gotten they have made substantial changes in recent years most notably a complete shift allowing GM to produce the Chevy Sonic. The first actually made in America sub-compact in decades.

[david sheeky 2]

what garage were you out of

portchester 315 boston post rd the home of the fun bunch

[david sheeky 2]

I saw only one post in an unrelated thread about the Verizon strike and the delay in scheduling a repair appointment. Are there any emergency service related impacts that this strike will have?

I heard from a couple of Verizon guys during their lunch break from the picket lines that the company is bringing in 20,000 non-union workers from other states to fill in for the striking workers. According to these guys, Verizon netted about 6 BILLION in PROFIT last year and their CEO's made over a quarter BILLION dollars in salaries and bonuses just last year but they're trying to send almost 10,000 jobs overseas to save money.

Sounds like union busting to me and they won't even negotiate with the unions.

this note is advise all of you verizon techs represented by cwa&ibew are back to work the company sluts who want to take away our benefits realized they could not function without there techs ceo mcadams had a conference call with cwa vp&ibew asking the techs to come back to work ceo mcadams informed the union the company was in bad shape as a sign of good faith the union agreed to return to work this is not the end many major issues must be settled contract talks are in progress aword of thanks to the many union brothers&sisters who showed there support when the picket lines were up

[ny10570 745]

I'd like to point out of all the accusations of sabotage not much has showed up in the news of actually substantiated claims. At one point the list of possible acts was down to 14. I do not doubt a few members acted over zealously and crossed the line into criminal action, but the media firestorm really raked the workers over and in the end they returned to work with nothing more than a commitment from Verizon at a compromise.

A hearty congratulations to all of the verizon workers. Your example will not only help protect our fellow union employees from unfair attacks, but also protect all of the non-union workers out there the companies will pay just enough to keep from uniting.