Originally Posted by
JVB
I keep seeing that posted on this forum, and I can only assume that people that post this have never worked in a union shop. And that's OK, but if you're going to post about something so passionately, at least know what you're talking about.
A union shop by definition is a shop in which you have a set number of days [[normally 30, 60 or 90 days) to join the union or you are terminated.
Let me repeat that - if you do not join the union you are FIRED. No exceptions. Join the union, or find another job. You DO NOT have the option of paying an equal amount and not being in the union - that is something different from a union shop.
There were two bills passed yesterday, one pertained to public sector unions, and one pertained to private sector unions. They were two separate bills because they are very different things with different rules.
I don't have any experience with public sector unions so I can only base that off of things I've read. Based on how the teacher[[s) that have posted here have described the teachers unions it is an agency shop, NOT a union shop. In an agency shop, you are NOT required to join the union, but you do have to pay an equal amount of dues since your contract and rights are negotiated by them. A long as you can opt out of having your money used for political purposes, that is relatively fair. But that is not a union shop.
A union shop [[for instance, a UAW plant), does not operate that way. The UAW is a private sector union, so different rules apply. If you work in a UAW plant you are working in a union shop, and that means you DO NOT have the ability to opt of the union. If you do, you are terminated immediately. Anybody that doubts this or doesn't understand it should talk to someone in the UAW, or look it up for yourself.