Hi, everyone, I've been working on my current job (also my first job) and I'm not quite happy with it, I believe I've been treated unfairly by the the company's management. I'm thinking of joining the union in my industry so I can get some helpful consultation from them. The union my co-worker recommended me is $40 per month, is it worth it? have you guys joined the union before and can you please share your stories? I don't really understand how the union helps the employees since I'm coming from a country where the union does not really exist. thanks in advance and sorry about my bad English. Cheers
Is It Worthy to Join The Union?
CharityCase on 05/06/2016 - 21:29
Comments
So what happened to the employees later on? Did the manager bear a grudge since he's got a warning letter? Did the manager become more unfriendly to the two employees?
They continued to live their lives… lol. It would have been stupid in this case to further abuse their position by trying to "get even" with the employees (as this is sort of what they would have received the warning for). Also, the higher ups would not have been pleased with the privacy breach (unfair dismissal, company image etc). AFAIK the manager/supe left the company before these 2 employees, and seemed quite embarrassed by the incident.
For me, it comes down to this; would you rather:
A) a written warning for essentially being illegally spied upon, or
B) no warning, and the possibility one low level manager/supe feels a bit disgruntled because they have to follow the law?
My current workplace is too small to have much union presence, but there was one at two of my previous jobs. Neither offered much in the way of perks, but they were good (I felt anyway) at "sticking it to the man" (PR) and negotiating good deals, as well as offering legal advice and helping people through discrimination/bullying issues.
Only if its the CFMEU
I believe I've been treated unfairly by the the company's management.
What have they done (or haven't done) to make you think that?
The union my co-worker recommended me is $40 per month,
What is included in this protection money.
Union membership is always optional and the decision to join can depend on the effectiveness and representation your Union provides. Contact your Union and ask them -
What do they provide as services? eg: representation, advice, education, discounts, workplace resources.
Are they interested in your call? Do they encourage you to be active in your workplace? Do they visit? Do they campaign for improvements in your pay and conditions?My Union provides Professional insurance, professional advice, industrial and workplace education, member discounts on retail goods, representation in the workplace individually and as a group and more. Their fees represent less than 1% of my income and my pays goes up by at least 2.5% per year so they pay for themselves.
I am not currently a union member, I have been in the past, whilst working casually in a call centre. This workplace had a high rate of unionism, and as such was probably one of the better call centres to work in; we were paid above award and no one dared time and then deduct our piss breaks… cough newspoll cough
Union fees were a small percentage - (1.5%?) of your wages. Union membership fees are fully tax deductible. If you're having a dispute with your employer re: wages, conditions, unfair dismissal etc, you can usually ask the union for advice/representation. Some unions might offer other benefits to it's members like ambulance cover, journey insurance, free legal/financial advice, or discounts for various services. It's basically collective bargaining for your workplace.
Anecdote: At afore mentioned workplace; two employees were to be disciplined for 'inappropriate discussion' by a supervisor/manager, who had been listening in on their headsets whilst they were in between calls. This is not allowed (privacy laws). A supervisor/manager may only listen in whilst a call is active. The union became involved, and the supervisor/manager was given a warning instead of the employees.