gonzo
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- Oct 17, 2005
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What is a Company Union?
In the late 1980s the Machinists Union financed the publication of a self-promoting history of itself titled THE FIGHTING MACHINISTS. The book was authored by Robert G. Rodden, a long-time member of the IAM’s privileged headquarters staff. Mr. Rodden’s work, despite the expected bias in favor of his employer, is nonetheless a well written and comprehensive source of information generally unavailable elsewhere.
Fortunately, THE FIGHTING MACHINISTS was written before the IAM had completed it’s shameful slide into the depths of company unionism. In fact, Mr. Rodden offers an excellent definition of a company union on page 80 of his treatise. He states:
Some of these company unions offered a wide variety of employee benefits such as profit-sharing and bonuses, company insurance and pensions, company magazines and many other sweeteners intended to make workers feel they were all part of "one big family"—service pins, veterans clubs, athletic teams, payroll propaganda slips, and even brass bands and country clubs. Company unions seemed to give employees a kind of pretend unionism, but actually tightened management’s grip on the work force. Their object was to keep workers out of genuine unions. To a large extent they were successful.
Now, where is that brass band.....
🙂
In the late 1980s the Machinists Union financed the publication of a self-promoting history of itself titled THE FIGHTING MACHINISTS. The book was authored by Robert G. Rodden, a long-time member of the IAM’s privileged headquarters staff. Mr. Rodden’s work, despite the expected bias in favor of his employer, is nonetheless a well written and comprehensive source of information generally unavailable elsewhere.
Fortunately, THE FIGHTING MACHINISTS was written before the IAM had completed it’s shameful slide into the depths of company unionism. In fact, Mr. Rodden offers an excellent definition of a company union on page 80 of his treatise. He states:
Some of these company unions offered a wide variety of employee benefits such as profit-sharing and bonuses, company insurance and pensions, company magazines and many other sweeteners intended to make workers feel they were all part of "one big family"—service pins, veterans clubs, athletic teams, payroll propaganda slips, and even brass bands and country clubs. Company unions seemed to give employees a kind of pretend unionism, but actually tightened management’s grip on the work force. Their object was to keep workers out of genuine unions. To a large extent they were successful.
Now, where is that brass band.....
🙂
