15% or We Strike!
A possible strike Thursday by construction workers could stop road-building projects like the resurfacing of the Eisenhower Expressway.
The leaders of the International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 150, and the Laborers’ District Council of Chicago and Vicinity say that nearly 15,000 union members will strike Thursday morning.
The unions are seeking wage and benefit increases of fifteen percent over three years, while companies have offered a three and one-quarter percent hike, according to Dennis Culloton, spokesman for the Mid-America Regional Bargaining Association, which represents local contractors.
And they waited right until the middle of road construction season. Can you imagine the irate calls to politicians across the state if workers leave torn up roads, one-lane bridges and construction bottlenecks in place with no visible progress being made? The script writes itself.
Labels: we got nothing
posted by SCC at 12:03 AM
39 Comments:
I hope they get it! Actually,
I hope they stick together and get it!
These greedy SOB's are making upwards of $65 an hour. And they want more?!
WE could do the same thing!...We are right in the middle of the highest homicide rate in years! We could just slow down....Not be so pro-active Oh! That's right we can't do that! The FOP already threw us under the Bus!
It's called a strong Union & Membership that has Balls. Something you'll never see w/ Flop or it's non-voting members. Can you say Spineless??
Operators make dman good money already.. And the so called "Stimulus" work will be going to them. You have to be well connected to get into that union and line of work. Fire all thier asses as far as Im concerned, I'll be first in line with a bribe to get that job.
And yet we still haven't received our raises.
good for them they stick together good job and good luck !
Maybe arbitrator Benn will fuck those guys too, and give them 2% a year... Oh, wait. No, THEY will strike and get what they want and the expense will simply be passed on to the taxpayers.
Think there's and mob ties to the leaders of the International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 150, and the Laborers’ District Council of Chicago? Nah, I didn't think so either!
Heard on the news this morning. Work zone speed limits will be enforced during the strike.
Just think if the unions would have stuck together in the 1980's.
Yeah... keep killing the golden goose... If you're not in a dangerous job (cop, fireman, etc) then unions are nothing more than a money grab. Unions and their pension obligations are killing this country.
I wish we could strike too!
It is very effective against the goofs in the city council and mayor who vote themselves a 6% raise a year on a voice vote!
With the economy the way it is, they should replace ALL of them a la PATCO (the Air Traffic Controllers Union).
Put all the illegals/"undocumented workers on the road and pay them $8 an hour. That is GOLD to them.
Then you'd see how fast people would come to their senses and say - WOW I was really making a lot of money on that job. AND BENEFITS TOO.
Too late - the job is gone.
It's happened in other industries. A lot of industries.
Stop your whining and be glad you got 2%. That's 2% more than a lot of people got and 50% more than people who lost jobs and can't find anything close to what they were making before.
WOW
SOME UNION HATERS OUT THERE.
SHOW UR SUPPORT JUST CAUSE THE FLOP IS THE TOOTHLESS TIGER.
YEA WE WALKED AROUND CITY HALL AND WHAT DID WE ACCOMPLISH.
WE HAD THE 0"LIMPICS CANCELED HERE.
SO THE TIP OF THE DAY STAY OFF THE EXPRESS WAY AND WATCH WHAT A PERSON WHO STRIKES CAN ACCOMPLISH.
let'm strike
plenty of unemployed to work for less money
Anonymous said...
It's called a strong Union & Membership that has Balls. Something you'll never see w/ Flop or it's non-voting members. Can you say Spineless??
7/01/2010 01:57:00 AM
You're an idiot!
The FOP contract contains a no strike clause. If the union participates or supports a strike or job action, union leaders are in deep shit. I believe it is also grounds for Daley to decertify the union AND void its contract with the city.
Choose your battles wisely. None of the other unions covering city employees is doing shit against the Daley Crime Family, either.
YOU chose a career in public service.
YOU knew you wouldn't get rich here.
You have a job with benefits and a pension, something MANY other people don't have and can't count on in the future. Deal with it and grow up. Your world could be a lot worse!
local 150 is the best union in the country i bet they get 15 percent fuck the city
I have been saying for years that the City does not negotiate in good faith with us for a contract in a timely fashion because we are not allowed by law to strike. They know every contract that they can keep our money for a few years and make more money off of it.
My proposal is to get the FOP statewide to use our political pressure to get a law on the books. This law would say in essence that any retro pay that we receive has interest attached. An accountant would have to come up with a fair percentage for the interest number.
This law would either severely limit the city's benefit of stalling negotiations for thier profit or eliminate it entirely. If the interest number was high enough it could even be a liability to the city to let negotiations drag.
I think this plan is feasible as long as the statewide FOP has a modicum of political power. I am sure that we could find some State Representative to sponsor such a bill. More than likely it wouldn't one from Chicago as our beloved mayor would try to stop a law like this from passage.
Any thoughts?
Talked to my Alderman recently and told him to hire more police because we were almost 1,000 men down from authorized strength and the department was being run into the ground.
The (unbelieveable) response: The city could not hire more police now because nobody wants to raise taxes and you (the CPD) just got "a 10% raise".
Stay safe, register everybody and vote.
I am delighted with this strike! No traffic jams! No construction workers operating heavy equipment and causing traffic jams! No cement/asphalt being poured!
IL Route 59 (Plainfield/Shorewood) a breeze to travel. Why? All of the heavy equipment sits idle and no workers. Fabulous! I hope the strike lasts until at least November!
Never the less, there's nothin' like a good strike to bring out the best comments from the membership of FLOP about the leadership of FLOP!
Headline in newspaper about another labor action:
If Strike Isn't Settled Quickly, It May Last Awhile (Ya Think!?!?)
It will not take three years like our contract did thanks to Shorty and Markie.
The companies will want to settle ASAP, what will be on the line is millions of $$$ in completion bonuses. Every day they complete a project ahead of schedule means more money in their pocket. Do the workers just get laid off early or do they get a piece of that?
and, if they get a "Retro Check" will they get interest on it.
>>>Anonymous said...
Operators make dman good money already.. And the so called "Stimulus" work will be going to them. You have to be well connected to get into that union and line of work. Fire all thier asses as far as Im concerned, I'll be first in line with a bribe to get that job.
7/01/2010 02:05:00 AM<<<
That's called being a SCAB!
Daley would love to have a long lines of SCABS, no regard to qualifications or citizenship, waiting to take our jobs as soon as he can get the CPD and CFD and every other department to their lowest possible manpower points.
Remember what his published answer to a city worker who complained that the Fire Fighters got only a 2 1/2% raise and the mayor got a 35% raise. "... if he doesn't like what we are offering he can quit. We had 40,000 take the last fire fighters exam and he can be easily replaced."
How mad are you, mad enough to get everyone you know to Vote this November?
good for them! who cares if they make $65 an hour jagmo
Operators make dman good money already.. And the so called "Stimulus" work will be going to them. You have to be well connected to get into that union and line of work. Fire all thier asses as far as Im concerned, I'll be first in line with a bribe to get that job.
7/01/2010 02:05:00 AM
You are another reason we as a union will never work together. There are way to many individuals that only look out for themselves. Shame on all of us. You're all big talkers on an anonymous blog, but spineless when the light is shined in your face. Yeah, I'm talking to you.
Signed,
BIG BAD POLICEMAN HIDING BEHIND ANONYMITY
#1 WE CAN'T STRIKE, so we have no leverage.
#2 SHORTSHANKS NEVER NEGOTIATES, so how do you propose we bargain.
#3 WE DON'T STICK TOGETHER
#4 GET INVOLVED IF YOU WANT MORE
#5 WE and that means everybody needs to stick together, we did it at the march and got screwed by BENN. We have to make the young guys see the light, but the tact team and running around in blue jeans is more important than sticking together.
Stop generating revenue that is all they understand. Make your traffic stops and if you write tickets just don't remember in court. Your probable cause tickets get thrown out anyway. Seatbelt mission, tell people to take corrective action. Assholes and thugs you can fu** with but most people you can correct and send on their way.
they're over paid , never ever seen anyone on highway construction crew look like they're overworked
fire ' m all alot of people out of work will take job at current salary
why not ?
i'm allready on strike.
2%......GFY !!!
Fire them all. They are way too greedy. None of them supported us. None of their union leaders helped us. As prisoners having to live here and pay taxes, why should we have to pay more to them?
I wish them the best of luck, stick together and it will get done!
Operators make dman good money already.. And the so called "Stimulus" work will be going to them. You have to be well connected to get into that union and line of work. Fire all thier asses as far as Im concerned, I'll be first in line with a bribe to get that job
And I'll accept a 1% raise over 5 years and give back health care and anything else they want ...
Nevermind I'll just stay here and do that F.O.P. F.O.P. F.O.P....
I keep telling my co-workers to register and to make sure they vote AGAINST daley in feb 2011.
I am a unit rep and we were trained and sworn in to register new or old voters at the June General Meeting.
The leadership found that less than half of our members are registered to vote.
Want to take a guess at how many police officers have admitted to me they are unregistered and who I have signed up to vote?
If you said none you would be correct. Zero, nada. No one has yet admitted to not being registered to vote, in fact, most are insulted by the question. Yet the facts are plain: more than half of us are not registered to vote!
So either there are undiscovered units chock full of unregistered officers -or- some officers are lying!
I know, I too was shocked, shocked I say to even imagine that an officer would tell a fib to another officer. Maybe they won't admit it to another officer, maybe they don't want to get called for jury duty. Who knows. But what we need to do is identify who is not registered to vote and get those people registered!
I would like to register at least one new voter from our ranks, just one, christ, at least one.
Come on, get off your behind and out from in front of the keyboard and get registered to vote!
It is part of the rent we pay for living in this country. Especially if anyone is unhappy with richardmdaley.
I don't know about you but I am sick to death of the entire daley family and all their offspring and all their ancestors either living or dead.
I want to see this miserable prick VOTED OUT OF OFFICE IN FEB 2011
so get 'er done! Register, then VOTE! It is the only respectable thing to do as we approach the birthday of the United States.
That would make the best 4th of July ever, get registered to VOTE on the Fourth of July, you might never forget it.
Wait til the democrats legalize the border jumpers. They will do our job for ALLOT less
i going to take a stab here and say the comments that are blasting the union, come from non-police. the equipment union has a strong membership and i hope they get what they are asking for. all we got was a sinking ship.
construction stopped today at the new 023 station and they had pickiters out front. Maybe they should settle for 2%.
Anonymous said...
#1 WE CAN'T STRIKE, so we have no leverage.
#2 SHORTSHANKS NEVER NEGOTIATES, so how do you propose we bargain.
#3 WE DON'T STICK TOGETHER
#4 GET INVOLVED IF YOU WANT MORE
#5 WE and that means everybody needs to stick together, we did it at the march and got screwed by BENN. We have to make the young guys see the light, but the tact team and running around in blue jeans is more important than sticking together.
7/01/2010 11:08:00 AM
The young guys don't know any other way, they always had the union, they never had their day off group changed on a whim, they never got fucked with by an alcoholic captain. Not the little petty bullshit now but really get fucked with!
Many around now can remember the CPD with NO contract, raises at the whim of the mayor and no seniority rights or rights of any kind. that was only around 1980, I was 30 them, most young officers either weren't born or were still in diapers.
Officers fought and fought hard to get what we have now, no one gave it to us, it was a struggle. And yes, the mayor doesn't negotiate except by edict: "take it or leave it"
An arbitrator is our only recourse and the city then has a 50/50 chance of coming out ahead.
And we cannot strike and never will have the right to strike. Google the Chicago Firefighters strike to find out why.
Be grateful for the rights we have and try to remember we didn't always have these rights. People look to NYPD and compare our wages etc. to theirs. We have plenty of rights they will never have, they cannot bid around the city, we can use our seniority for lots, they cannot. They still have a strict hat rule, they must wear it or else get written up or suspended.
And Philadelphia, better health plan but worse wages, much worse.
It could be better here but it also could be worse, the best thing we can all do for ourselves is to get on the same page and vote daley out!
The 15% has nothing to do with the strike..... It is about health care benefits!!!!
Anonymous said...
construction stopped today at the new 023 station and they had pickiters out front. Maybe they should settle for 2%.
7/01/2010 09:20:00 PM
Isn't that something! The workers who will occupy the interior of that building cannot strike and have to take whatever gets shoved their way but the guys building it strike for better wages, conditions etc.
I hope they are out a month and get whatever they can. More power to them. This cop supports union labor and if I could honor the picket line, I would.
You are another reason we as a union will never work together. There are way to many individuals that only look out for themselves. Shame on all of us. You're all big talkers on an anonymous blog, but spineless when the light is shined in your face. Yeah, I'm talking to you.
Signed,
BIG BAD POLICEMAN HIDING BEHIND ANONYMITY
<<<>>>
Umm, great speech and all, but Im not the police. Maybe your the kind of officer that covers his nametag on the street when he talks shit too.
Hopefully, the taxpayers can get a tax reduction since no one is filling the contract to make these roads? If you are an Officer, then you should know most operators make more than you and your wildest dreams of overtime put together and the old lady too.
But do remember, It's a public blog, and there is many examples present of why you guys got screwed posted all over the place, annonymously ;) careful out there
stop whining and fight to raise your salary
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