Quote:
Originally Posted by dadcat
(Post 2376240)
This country was founded by a union. 13 colonies, remember? Organized labor. Or do you prefer self checkout while the person who was at a register is now unemployed? Union Ironworker for 40 years, I have what I have because of it. Proud of it!
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Well, the group that declared independence was a "Confederation of States" - The Articles of Confederation and Perpetual Union was the first written constitution of the United States. Written in 1777 and stemming from wartime urgency, its progress was slowed by fears of central authority and extensive land claims by states. It was not ratified until March 1, 1781.
Under these articles, the states remained sovereign and independent, with Congress serving as the last resort on appeal of disputes. Significantly, The Articles of Confederation named the new nation “The United States of America.”
The Constitution, adopted in 1787, used the words "in order to form a more perfect union, establish this constitution," which outlined the current 3 branches of government (not a union like the Iron Workers, it was describing improving the Confederation of States by implementing the three branch government we have today.(We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.) (Defence is spelled that way in the Constitution, old spelling)
Self Checkout? Cause by the increase in minimum wage to 15.00 in most states. Unions backed this increase because the starting rate in most union contracts is also tied to the minimum wage rates and include an automatic increase in pay if the minimum wage goes up.
Traditionally, unions have supported minimum wage initiatives because their contracts have been directly or indirectly tied to the minimum wage. For instance, UNITE contract that covered workers in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and South Jersey said the following: "Whenever the federal legal minimum wage is increased, minimum wage [in the agreement] shall be increased so that each will be at least fifteen (15%) percent higher than such legal minimum wage.”
Contracts for Cal Fire Local 2881, which represents 6,000 California firefighters, and UFCW Local 1099’s agreement with CVS have had similar stipulations. Other contracts, such as those signed by Retail, Wholesale, & Chain Store Food Employees Union Local 338 and UFCW 1262, also stipulated that minimum wage increases trigger an automatic return to the bargaining table, where new -- usually higher -- compensation is negotiated. The Center for Union Facts estimates that unions may have spent over $70 million on the Fight for $15 since 2012.
Why Do Unions Fund The Fight For $15 Minimum Wage? Because They Gain A Financial Windfall In Return
When technology/automation becomes cheaper than human labor, companies shift to automation. Ironically, one of the key issues in the longshoreman's contract dispute is the shift to automation. That was not a concern when they were promoting the change in minimum wage. This is proven by corporations like Walmart returning to human labor when self checkout theft exceeds human labor costs (they are removing self checkout from Walmart stores with theft issues now. Notice that grocery stores have self checkout at stores without theft issues but not in areas where theft is an issue. You can see this demonstrated in the area around the villages...)