It has been a few weeks and now the results of trying to help another union member has brought me threats of board action and censorship. Is I was always told , all of us union members are brothers and sisters or one big family. You should look after and help those members that need help even if they are not in your local or even same union. Always sounded nice but when put to the test, it never comes down to that. I started, several years back to look at the difference between my local( 540 ) and the other local in my Kroger KMA, local 1000. I have had a few disagreements, with my local many years ago and was always told that one needs to , sometimes, hold your local and reps feet t something done. Have never seen many problem from my local and considering that our business agent has to cover amount 90 stores , he does a good job. There are many other stewards that does help out and gets the job done. Biggest problem is that members need to speak up for their selves and be active in calling their rep and pushing them if not for a better term of language choice. I have run into many problems with members of Local 1000 and that also includes several years where I was married and my wife was in that local. Now there are some really great union reps in that local and then there are a few that needs pushed and pushed hard. When that occurs I have always advised members to not waste a lot of time with the rep and start going over their heads when they get no answer or ones they do not like . Getting a real understood message and meaningful results ( good or bad ) is what every member is entitled to. When that does not happen, is when it is time to push. Have been involved in two of these in the past. They was members that had no internet access or knowledge of what next. All I did was help them by providing emails and updated sent to their local offices , regional offices and even international office ( ufcw.org ) when needed. Had one where I sent ( never without the consent and message needed of the member ) 12 emails directly to the international office letting them know of members being help hostage by their local reps. It has gotten results and many times reps there is a hurry. But it has always come at the expense of local 1000 getting my local to try to shut me up and let them alone. This has brought me to the understanding that the only true brotherhood in any locals is not the members but the locals themselves. Helping your fellow union members is not your responsibility if they are not in your local. So to me it comes out to this, If a member of local 1000 and a fellow employee of my Kroger store has a problem, then all I am to do is tell them to call their rep and leave it at that. I am in a different local and have been told that I do not know their contract or what is in it so shut up and let it be. Have asked back then as to what ever happened to helping your fellow brothers and sisters if we are to be one big UFCW family? Never got a good answer back on that one. This past several weeks I have been involved in trying to help a girl at work get in touch with her local rep to solve an ongoing pay issue for almost a year. Several attempts to local 1000 has gotten a promise to contact her . My involvement is nothing more that sending an email for her and trying to let her know whom next to contact. When that failed I sent an email to Washington for her. Three days later she got a call from her rep and he is to look into is and was giving her some song and dance routine about it. Two days before her call came one from my local giving me a riot act about shutting up, censorship and not over stepping my reaches. This is what I predicted and was included in the email to Washington. Will it change my mined? One never knows. Now the girl involved has a meeting to discuss this with her and I advised her to push the issue and if not happy with the rep then to ask for another rep or I will let her use my lap top to email Washington back again. Common sense and reading their contract should place her at least top pay clerk and not four rings below that, considering her time she has with Kroger and in the same KMA area. We will wait and see. Now come the last Wednesday of this month I will attend our union meeting and see what they have to say to me. They also are unhappy with the fact that our contract and that of local 1000 is placed on the web and was told I had no right to do that. The only reason given is that it should not be available to no union members. They are also asking me to have them removed from krogertalk or else. I guess I will just have to find out what the or else will be. What it come down to is this. DO I still support the union and believe in it? Yes. But I do not believe in the politics of it and that one should ignore others in need of help . I asked my business agent one question and never got a answer back other that apples and oranges. That was this. If a fellow worker was hurt and bleeding, should I help them or first ask what local they are in and as to if they are a member or not of the UFCW? For now I will continue doing what ai think is best. I am only 4 months away from my aniversary date with the local. I can always leave then and save the $14 a week dues I pay.
As one would ask this one question here. If someone comes here and askes a legitimate question and posts under anonymous, shoulr you as a forum member answer them , one way or the other? Now from what the unions are wanting them to do is this. notice the question but ignore the poster untill they join and join this boast/forum only and no others.
As much as i dislike anonymous posters ( most of those being here realizes that ) they still deserve a restonce back is seeking advice .
I understand what you mean and the fact of the matter is local 540 really needs to advance in technology. I've suggested in the past that they should setup a facebook page and pass out a notice to our members to join and be active in this facebook fan page, but the idea was simply shot down. The internet is the quickest way to get information from one place to another. I think it would be a great idea to broadcast the meetings and have previous recordings on the meetings for verified members on local540.org but they won't never consider it.
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My Views and Opinions do not reflect that of the Kroger company. I'm an indivdual expressing my 1st amendment right.
grumpy1 that is a great post. some thoughts i have right away are that you are a caring person willing to help people with their problems. i am exactly the same way. it is my moral integrity to help step in for another union member when they are being "mistreated". there are i am sure a zillion examples of this happening daily throughout the kroger empire. just yesterday a kid was fired from my store's deli for supposedly eating deli product.
now i can step in for him and help him with his case or i can turn my back and go "oh well". the same can be said for all the other employees in the deli. they can choose to be silent or to be heard. i think it is fair to say that there is a system already set up for such cases and it is expected to go thru that process albeit weak or broken. everybody is different. my union rep is not yours so she might be better or worse than yours. do you get what i'm saying? a lot of employees just dont know how to act or react when all the sudden they are put to the coals. they need help. its a noble act to give your own time up to help them get through their dilemma. most people would not do so simply because <1> they dont think of it or that way <2> they do not want to get involved or the trouble of it <3> they are as ignorant as the person who needs the help! i truly believe in union brotherhood and i have and i will help out with certain senarios that crop up at times in our store. i am not a union steward. i have been asked a couple times to sit in with individuals when they go to the "dog house". i think my current store manager sees me as strong willed and gives a good perspective on things. but also at times he has hated me because I do stick my neck up high in the roost. it can get you in trouble. but my logic has always been to make people more educated. like this kid who got fired. i will not give much of my time and effort to his case b/c i think he is guilty. am i 100% sure? no. so should i step in to help b/c my mind is wishy washy about his situation and there are holes in it like the lacey swiss cheese he eats? i don't know. its a moral dilemna there but i'm not going to loose too much sleep over it. there are alot of injustices going on all around us every minute of the day. i like to consume myself into some of them just simply because its fun! i think, grumpy1, you do it for the same reason(s). its like every once and awhile you say "What? well thats just not right! i'll show you the way it needs to be done!!!!" and yea its fun.
mmm i can go on and on and on with this. this will be a great thread. a couple years back i was a deli back up at a store. the store manager told us we all had to wear hair nets and hats were not allowed. crazy! i question him on the reason and logic behind this move. after all no other stores were doing it. i was not a yes man but a chicken sticking my head up high fighting for JUSTICE! all of my subordinated were watching me to see what i would do. if i fought they were happy or if i folded then we all wore hair nets. well one day i was called up to the office. it was hillarious. i peeked in and said "if this isnt a good time i can come back later" the store manager said "naw come in and have a seat". i said no i rather stand. i immidiately asked for a union rep. he was pissed. i was scared. but basically all he wanted to do was explain why we were to wear hair nets. it would of taken 15 seconds. he needed me to join his team. i sorta conceeded my stance b/c well i want going to win the battle. but guess what. they DO NOT WEAR HAIR NETS there today. Why is it? Because the store manager was an idiot and was plain out wrong. He knows it. I know it. The whole world knows it. Its a small victory and who the hell really cares huh. Well its just an impacts that I made on him, myself, and a few others. Is it oh .... unconventional? hell yea it is. but we need people like you and me grumpy1 who think out of the box. thats all for now
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I am no longer part of the oppressed, evil workforce of Kroger! Can you say "Hallelujah"
