The Boston Globe reports that the Houskeepers traveled to the trustees meeting in New York City with help from the SEIU. Apparently, plenty of scientists who work at Woods Hole in the summer,and donors to research there supported them, too.
The “save money” because the endowment went down reasoning apparently was negated by both the endowments rebound, and the willingness of the Woods Hole Community to support the long time housekeepers some in their 60s.
The dirty little secret really is “there are no unskilled jobs” and having the same houskeeper to meet the needs of the same family for decades has value. Workers are not interchangeable cogs in any enterprise.
Perhaps the largest threat to small “d” democracy in America is the increasing concentration of wealth – and degradation of labor and workers.
This story is one win, however small, for loyalty between workers and management and quality over both bean counting and treating workers as interchangeable cogs. The Boston Herald said it was union support from the SEIU that helped tip the balance. But without the Trustees of Marine Biological Labs listening to their consciences and the housekeepers being willing to stand up and speak out, this story would have had a different ending.
When the union realized that MBL really COULDN’T afford to have full housekeeping staff continue through the slower winter months, and they really WOULD outsorce, they finally agreed to the seasonal layoffs the MBL proposed in the first place.
… there ever being a proposal on the table from center.
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p>It really sounds like a typical MBA-esque cost saving move and the guy didn’t count on the backlash.
However, the public coverage does not indicate that the SEIU caused the initiative to outsource to Jani-King. I am pleased that the housekeepers spokers spoke up, had support from many sources, and that their fund of knowledge and experience was retained, with reasonable flexibility and mutuality in negotiations at some level and for whatever reasons.
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p>Cheapest is not always best, and definitely not “equivalent” in this situation based on the data set available.
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p>If you have additional data, please provide links and material.
In RepublicanLand, unions are ALWAYS WRONG, and ALWAYS THE CAUSE OF THE PROBLEM. Management was just doing the best it could, acting in the best interests of all concerned parties, as it always does.
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p>These are truisms that are not to be questioned. Citations are therefore not required.
And, frankly, management is sometimes rogue, too. A prime example was during the Coal Wars, see Thunder on the Mountain among other entries. Democracy is healthiest when there is balance between labor and management, between capital concentration and reasonable living wages. Too far in either direction and tyranny, fascism, wage-slaves, and serious unrest with violence are the result. At best.
just usually.
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p>Here is what unions can do for you…
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p>or elected officials and most other state workers, the retirement age would rise to 60-67, up from 55-65; for workers in hazardous duty jobs the retirement age would rise to 55-62 from 55-60, and the retirement age would jump to 50-57 from 45-55 for firefighters, police officers and some correction officers.
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p>First let me say of Gov Patrick accomplishes this (not just mentioning it like Obama mentioned Tort reform and then did nothing), I will give him uber credit!
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p>Now… you can retire from the “firefighters, police officers and some correction officers” at 45… FORTY-FIVE??? Are you serious? WHile some may argue that the union is doing there job I would say the union is depleting state and local coffers at precipitous rates in “doing their jobs”.
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p>PS This is happening in MA… not just RepublicanLand!!!!