Siemens Diagnostic CSEs Need a Union!

Unions Are A Voice
People with the same concerns often get together to talk and look for answers. That’s exactly what a union is all about. It is people coming together and voicing their mutual concerns. By saying, “UNION YES,” they make life better on the job for their families and for the entire community.

Unions Are Families
Our families are shaping our lives and our nation’s life. The working people in unions want to be sure the family remains vital. With the changes in today’s economy, that can be tough. But today’s unions are searching for new ways to adjust to the challenges affecting all members of the family, with ideas like affordable childcare, help for senior citizens and family and medical leave for emergencies. By working together to see these ideas become realities, union members are helping to overcome the changes facing the family.

Unions Are Working People
Over the years they have made this country great, bringing prosperity and growth. From actors to truck drivers to teachers to woodworkers, they have worked to make life better on the job through their unions. Today they’re working to make sure that their workplace is safe and that their jobs are secure. That makes
their communities safe and secure as well.

Safety
In today’s modern workplace, it means having the right to know what hazards exist and what precautions
should be taken.

Security
With today’s economic changes, it means having a voice on issues that will affect an industry and a
worker’s future.
It’s not much to ask for....just a common sense approach to safety and security.

Do Unions limit my ability to function in the workplace?No. In fact, unions enhance the ability of employees to be productive in the workplace by eliminating dissention between workers and management. With a union, workers are provided a vehicle to address their concerns about work issues. Without a union, employees are limited in effectiveness to what the employer believes the employees need to perform the job effectively and safely.

Does the union limit my individual ability to communicate with management?
No. Unions encourage communication between individual workers and their supervisors. In fact, unions provide the ability of workers to speak to supervisors or managers about a problem without fear of repercussion, since union members enjoy legal protections under their contracts and national labor laws.

Does the union limit the ability of workers as a group to communicate with management?

No, it increases that ability. Workers and management can only work together if workers have the power and ability to address concerns as equals. Without that power and ability, the employer has no obligation to address employee concerns and needs.

Does the union provide a vehicle for communication between employees?

Yes, most definitely. Unions exist for the sole purpose of worker advocacy. Workers helping workers. If workers form a union and band together, they begin to discuss among themselves their needs in the workplace. A union allows these workers to meet with management as a group to address changes.

What if I don’t agree with the majority of my fellow workers?

Each worker in a union has the right and obligation to express his or her point of view on a subject. Union members are encouraged to speak out to address their concerns. Many ideas contribute to a more intelligent solution of a problem. Unions are fully democratic organizations. Just as in any democracy, there will be persons who don’t agree with the majority on certain issues. A union promotes the idea of a voice and dignity for all. Unlike unorganized workplaces, unions have room for many differing viewpoints and ideas, and all viewpoints and ideas are heard. Members then act upon the debate, by making up their own minds and voting.

Unions protect the rights and dignity of the individual through the collective efforts of all.

Who really runs the union?

The members run the union. Unions are democratic organizations formed by workers, for workers.

If workers really run the union, why does the union have officers?

As in any organization, certain responsibilities must be met. A local union, as well as the International Union, elects officers to meet these responsibilities imposed by the members, such as presiding over meetings, reviewing expenditures, taking meeting minutes, and administering the operation of the union.

What are the typical officers in a local union?

The typical officers in a local union are the Business Manager, President, Vice President, Recording Secretary, Treasurer, and an Executive Board consisting of three to seven members.

How are Officers chosen?

All union officers are elected by the members. The Labor Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959, the federal law that defines the operation of unions, explicitly states that all local union and international officers must be elected by the members at regular intervals. The IBEW International Union, through a membership vote, elects its officers every five years at its International Convention. Local unions elect their officers on terms decided by the membership. Most local unions elect their officers by secret ballot every three years.

Can any member run for office?

Any member of good standing for two years (not delinquent on dues) can be nominated and elected to local union office. Any member of good standing for five years is eligible for international office. Members are nominated at local union meetings in accordance with the procedures determined by the members in their local union by-laws.

Your rights to self organize are protected by law.

" Sec. 7. [§ 157.] Employees shall have the right to self-organization, to form, join, or assist labor organizations, to bargain collectively through representatives of their own choosing, and to engage in other concerted activities for the purpose of collective bargaining or other mutual aid or protection, and shall also have the right to refrain from any or all of such activities except to the extent that such right may be affected by an agreement requiring membership in a labor organization as a condition of employment as authorized in section 8(a)(3) [section 158(a)(3) of this title]."

Get more information about your rights to organize in this PDF Document

ELECTION PROCESS

NOTHING

That’s right! It will not cost any employee even One Red Cent to find out what the IBEW can do and will do for us.

There will be NO DUES until the IBEW negotiates a contract acceptable to us by secret ballot vote. This means as soon as we win our NLRB election, our negotiations will start, but we will pay nothing until the IBEW delivers the contract. Nor will there be any initiation fee for any current employee. All we need to do is sign a membership application card during the sixty (60) days open charter period following the ratification of our IBEW contract.

The IBEW is the largest union of electrical workers in the country and has been negotiating contracts since long before any of us were born. The IBEW is confident – so confident that it will not cost us even One Red Cent to find out for ourselves. The IBEW says, “The proof is in the contract.”

WHO WILL PAY FOR OUR NEGOTIATIONS? IBEW WILL!

WHO WILL TRAIN OUR OFFICERS AND STEWARDS? IBEW WILL!

WHO WILL PAY FOR OUR CONTRACT RESEARCH? IBEW WILL!

WHO WILL FURNISH SKILLED NEGOTIATORS? IBEW WILL!

And only after the IBEW delivers the contract we want – acceptable by our own vote – will we be asked to start paying dues.

What are they?

An Authorization card is a card signed by an employee signifying his or her desire in forming a Union at their place of employment. The card states that the employee "authorizes a Local Union of the IBEW to represent them in collective bargaining". This means that the employee has indicated his or her desire to be represented by the Union.

The National Labor Relations Act, the federal labor law that defines employees' rights to form a Union, requires that a majority of employees sign cards to prove they want a Union before the Union can ask for recognition form the Employer.

Know the Facts

- The law requires proof of sufficient support before an election can be held.

- The company will not know who did or who did not sign the card.

- The IBEW will always return a card to you if requested.

- No one will ever force you to sign a card.

Still want more information on authorization cards? Here is a two page PDF full of details.

Why Employers Oppose the Union...The Facts

Why do employers fight the legal right of employees to organize? Without a union, employees are employed at will. What this means is legally, employees have no rights other than those expressed in state and federal laws. Laws are only as good as their enforcement. If an employer violates the rights of employees, employees are usually unwilling to expend the time and expense involved to fight the charge and clear their good name. Employers have a whole cadre of attorneys and consultants to protect the company. The duty of these attorneys and consultants is to represent the interests of management.

With a union, employees gain additional rights, enforceable in a court of law. The IBEW has its own attorneys and representatives whose sole purpose is to represent the rights of employees. Employees gain further legal rights just with their union representation. The law gives rights to employees organized collectively that individual employees do not enjoy.

What about employer claims that they will lose flexibility with a union? Employers do lose flexibility in certain circumstances with a union, because the rights of both employer and employee are spelled out in a legal, binding contract. For example, employers lose flexibility in doing the following under most union contracts:

• Set wages where they want, without input or review by employees;

• To layoff employees without recourse and employee input;

• Utilize subcontractors on an unlimited basis to reduce costs of full-time employees;

• Change benefits whenever management wants without any say from employees;

• Absolve actions by supervisors or managers without a hearing or review of such actions;

• Hold a grievance meeting with peer and/or management review that gives the employee filing the grievance no legal recourse, and is unenforceable in a court of law;

   

  Are there economic considerations that prompt management's opposition? Yes. Employers make no qualms about their desire to maximize profits and minimize costs. If unorganized employers compete with surrounding organized employers (which are limited in their ability to cut wages of employees or subcontract jobs at a cheaper rate) the unorganized employer can be very successful in reducing costs by holding or reducing employee wages and benefits. If all employers are organized, however, employee wages and benefits are taken out of competition, and employers must then compete on improving productivity or innovative methods.

  Without a union, management is free to use employee wages and benefits to reduce its costs, thereby driving down the wages and benefits of the organized employees of other competitors. The unorganized employer then must cut its employee costs further, and on and on. The cycle never ends.

  Are organized companies competitive? Yes, most definitely. The IBEW has worked hard with its employers to insure the employers are productive and competitive. Employees have the same desire to make a company successful as management does. However, the methods are different in organized companies. In organized companies, workers and management are equal partners in addressing the needs of employees, shareholders, and customers.

  Are there any other reasons employers oppose our right to organize? The ultimate reason is that employers lose total control over the working lives of their employees. When employees organize a union, employers must, by law, bargain with employees and their union over terms and conditions of employment, and that right is enforced by federal law. This is the primary reason employers expend so much time, effort, and money preventing employees from finding out the truth about union organization.

  Industrial democracy provided by our union limits the inherent dictatorial power of management.

  Only then can we as employees have an equal, effective voice in our own affairs.

We have highlighted "The Dirty Dozen" twelve dirty tricks employers try to pull when oppossing employee efforts to unionize.