I grew up hearing nothing good or praiseworthy about labor unions. Idaho at that time did not have much of a union presence so my first exposure was when I relocated to West Virginia in 1992. The hospital system I worked for had a union that enrolled all employees below the level of credentialed professionals, i.e. RN’s, PT’s, RT’s and administrators. I, therefore, was not required to join the union but those I supervised and many of my close friends/coworkers were stalwart proponents and proud dues paying members.
As I was naive about this “union thing”, a colleague suggested I watch a movie called, “Matewan” that was released in 1987. It gave a fairly accurate depiction of the 1920 battle between local coal miners and a detective agency hired as “muscle” by the mine owners. The United Mine Workers of America was attempting to unionize the local workers of the Stone Mountain Coal Corporation. The unionizing effort had the support of Matewan’s mayor as well as the Mingo County sheriff who bore the famous Hatfield name. The battle that ensued when coal company officials and their hired guns started evicting residents from their company housing left a total of ten dead. It lit the fuse for many more skirmishes around the southern coalfields of West Virginia that I grew to love.
I rented the VHS tape of Matewan at the local video/convenience/gas station in Montgomery, WV. I watched it twice that weekend just to make sure I caught on to all the history and nuances of my new home territory. My eyes were definitely opened to the deplorable and unsafe conditions in which the miners lived and worked. Production bias aside, I felt sympathy and a better understanding of why unions needed to exist. However, during my nine years there, every three years, as the contract drew close to expiration, my fellow workers would threaten a strike. I heard stories around the lunch table about tires on cars being slashed, paint bombs tossed at cars,etc. One union member friend asked me point blank if I was going to ‘cross our picket line to come to work?’. I returned his question with a point blank answer of my own. “Yes, I will because while I support your job, I do not believe in holding sick patients hostage that need my care. You guys really need to work this thing out without compromising patient care”.
Luckily, for me, my cherished Camaro, and my friendships, there never was an actual strike or picket line. Each time, an agreement was signed near the midnight deadline and life returned to normal.
The other lasting memory of my union days involved witnessing long friendships, even within families, torn apart over bidding for posted union positions of higher pay. That seemed antithetical to the “union brotherhood” I had heard so many brag about.
As a department manager, I experienced the handcuffs of union leadership whenever a situation with a unionized worker arose that warranted discipline. The least productive and undependable employees would run for the cover of the union if they were ever “written up” for unexcused absences or “no shows”. I found this to be frustrating.
I did not leave Montgomery General Hospital because of those frustrations directly, but it was a sobering learning experience I would have never had by staying here in the Rocky Mountains.
As I listen and read the current news of the UAW strikes I am reminded of my southern coal field union times. I honestly know there are two sides, both worthy of merit and consideration. I hope the players involved can work the details out to a mutual satisfaction without the devils that happened in Matewan over a hundred years ago. One rumor contained in the Battle of Matewan is of friendly fire among the coal miners and supportive elected officials due to ‘improper relations’ with each other’s spouses. Union brotherhood taken to another level! This rumor was fueled as Mingo County sheriff Hatfield quickly married the widow of Matwan’s mayor who died in the gun battle. Some thought of a bullet from Hatfield’s gun.
The UAW strike is a different animal with different consequences in a different time and industry. Knee jerk layoffs of support industry workers by the corporations seem impulsive at this point. Requesting a pay rate increase seems reasonable as profits have been recorded as significant. Maybe a part of the negotiations can be that each full time employee receives a new car at a highly discounted price with the tax consequences being also covered by the company? That shouldn’t hurt their bottom line too much. It would support production as well as give that “second paycheck” I have spoken of before.
Regardless, may fairness and brotherhood prevail. May the economic impact be softened by cooler heads and mature educated minds who can listen to all sides and agree where necessary for the good of all. Wouldn’t it be lovely to hear the words, “JOB WELL DONE!” spoken at the final press conference announcing a peaceful agreement?!