I belong to a union. I am mostly happy with the job my union does but there are many things that they do that I do not agree with.
For one thing I do not like the way my union is in lockstep with the Democratic party. I also do not like the way my local (not the national) takes part in lobbying efforts. It is my opinion that it is the job of the national and not the local to do any and all lobbying.
What bugs me the most is when they ask for the members to vote on a dues increase.
Right now my union dues are set at 1.3% of my base pay, the local wants to raise this to 1.5% of base pay.
Their argument is that because they forward a portion of our dues on the the national they end up with less money to work with. That sounds reasonable enough to the lazy or uninformed but not to those who have half a brain.
Because union dues are based on the base pay the union bargains with the company for they can easily raise their revenue by getting a better paying contract for the membership. Think about that, the local is crying poor because 1.3% is not enough money for them so they want to get the membership to vote in a dues increases. Rather than put a dues increase out to vote (where it will fail) the union leadership should focus on getting the members a better paying contract which will also raise their revenue!
