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It's a long comment, but I'm having my gripe!

As I have mentioned in this newsgroup before, I am not in a union. I was
in a union (NUR then ASLEF) for about 19 years. I was an ASLEF branch
secretary at the time of the successful company plan strikes in 1989(?)
and gave the union my full support (this was the only time that I remember
both unions actually working together instead of against each other). I
was then working on the Northern Line Train Staff Operating Manual (the
black filofax)which occupied me full time, including time at home and as a
consequence resigned as branch secretary as I couldn't give it my full
attention. As time went on, I became disillusioned with my branch and
their attitude of a couple of the active members.

I then left ASLEF and joined NUR. That was a mistake. NUR weren't the
least bit interested in their members, they were more interested in
selling the members details off to outside firms. I regularly got
bombarded at home with junk mail trying to persuade me to get a Unity (the
union) credit card or take out a Unity loan, or insurance, but absolutely
nothing from the union about union matters. I wrote to the union telling
them to stop sending me this crap as it wasn't what I joined the union for
and I objected to the principle of it. They didn't, so I resigned from
them a well. As a consequence, I have not been in a union for about 11
years.

If I feel strongly about a strike issue, then I will come out on strike as
well in support. However I will normally come in to work on strike days,
as do a growing number of people. The actions of some of the so-called
union reps and heavies that seem to appear from nowhere on picket duty
only reinforces my resolve. They know that they aren't going to make me
turn back, so don't normally bother with me, but their treatment of other
staff on the day leaves a lot to be desired. A line of drunken pickets, as
has happened at least once, doesn't do anything for the cause in the eyes
of the passengers that they are preventing from travelling.

The strikes these days are all about union power - showing who's the boss,
nothing to do with their members interests. How many of the recent tube
strikes have got anywhere?
There was a strike over safety issues, There were no changes to any of the
safety procedures and the safety issues that the unions called a strike
for still remained. When the union found they weren't getting the support,
they made up some excuse for calling off the strike yet, if they thought
the issues so serious from a safety point of view, why didn't they carry
on with the strike?

The last strike was about pay, with the unions making ridiculous demands
they knew they wouldn't get. Once again it gets to a stalemate and the
unions are looking for a way out. Ken steps in with the offer of a review
when he takes over and instantly the strike's over and he is seen as the
great saviour by the travelling public and it's the way out that the
unions are looking for. Still no pay rise and if we do get it, it's likely
to be incorporated in whatever the new pay deal is going to be anyway so
it's irrelevant.

These are just two examples where members have dutifully followed the
unions instructions and have not come in to work, losing a day's pay each
time and for what? nothing!. Who's the mug? It's certainly not me or the
others who came in to work. The rest of the people have nothing to show
for the strikes, other than a loss on their pay slip. Certainly nothing
has changed as a result of them losing their money. All that has happened
is that the union bosses have been able to show to the government and each
other that they have power.

Most union members are like sheep. They don't bother to think for
themselves and just follow everybody else. They're quick to moan about a
strike and losing a day or more pay, but they still vote for the strike or
worse, don't bother to vote at all. The attitude is often "Oh well, it's a
day off!" Those that have other jobs (especially the mini cab drivers)
don't give a toss anyway as it gives them another day to carry on with
their other work. I used to be surprised when I heard that people had
another job. I'm not any longer. So many seem to do other things that I'm
beginning to wonder if those that only do their LU job are in the
minority. With some, their driver's job is secondary to what else they do
outside of work.

I am all for unions, they are needed to ensure the workers conditions are
as they should be. But neither the union or the company should be the
dominant one and neither should have the power to hold the other to
ransom. Ideally a happy balance should exist, although it rarely seems to
happen.

I would like to be in a union. If asked by trainees about whether they
should join a union or not I advise them to - there are a lot of
advantages, especially for a new employee who might well need the union's
support. However, until both unions sort their act out and stop fighting
against each other and put their members first rather than the union, I
will remain a non-member and do as my conscience tells me.


Roger