Canada Postal Strike

[ray schrauwen]

Anyone paid by public taxes should not be allowed to strike...it holds the very people who pay their wages hostage. They all knew what they were signing up for when they accepted their job offer, and theres nothing from preventing them to look elsewhere if they feel they have been wronged.

I like what Regan did with the air traffic controllers years back.

Did you like it so much that you became and ATC in the USA? My brother was an ATC, ATC Trainer etc.. for the RCAF he'll tell you what it did to the industry. Like hell he would want a job down south in the private sector ATC let alone a private sector ATC job in Canada.

Extremely brutal conditions for a pay I would not say reflects the job. You fly much? I perfer not to from what i have heard. Even if it is the safest way to travel.... yikes.

[ron1950]

Did you like it so much that you became and ATC in the USA? My brother was an ATC, ATC Trainer etc.. for the RCAF he'll tell you what it did to the industry. Like hell he would want a job down south in the private sector ATC let alone a private sector ATC job in Canada.

Extremely brutal conditions for a pay I would not say reflects the job. You fly much? I perfer not to from what i have heard. Even if it is the safest way to travel.... yikes.

all right ray......for once someone that knows what was going on in the skies after the 81 fireings of all the atc guys in the us.....as a retired atc of 31 years i can tell ya the skeis were not that safe after the strike...we were all new practacaly....they had to restrict private flights for a few years after it.....we were a;ways paid ok but never all that great as government employees.... canada has a private system that has gone bankrupt i beleave but i will not get into that as i really dont know that much about the canadan system....all i can tell ya is it looks easy when u see it on tv...but u should sit down and try vectoring 15 or twenty aircarft and make it all work time after time...oh well enough of my soapbox.....hope the mail get sorted out up there soon.....

[Doby]

Did you like it so much that you became and ATC in the USA? My brother was an ATC, ATC Trainer etc.. for the RCAF he'll tell you what it did to the industry. Like hell he would want a job down south in the private sector ATC let alone a private sector ATC job in Canada.

Extremely brutal conditions for a pay I would not say reflects the job. You fly much? I perfer not to from what i have heard. Even if it is the safest way to travel.... yikes.

Why would I become an ATC?? I'm Canadian...smelling to many solder fumes lately Ray

And again...no-one is holding a gun to anyone's head to keep them at a particular job.....last time I checked people were free to quit their jobs and look elsewhere..or have things changed recently with new "anti-quiting" laws?? I used to travel quite a bit at my last job...not so much this one though..


All I'm saying is that if the public pays your wages...you don't have the right to strike and hold the public hostage.. I'll reconsider my last staement though...Teachers should have the right to stike all they want during July and August...

[GP73]

Anyone paid by public taxes should not be allowed to strike...it holds the very people who pay their wages hostage. They all knew what they were signing up for when they accepted their job offer, and theres nothing from preventing them to look elsewhere if they feel they have been wronged.

I like what Regan did with the air traffic controllers years back.

Doby, can you explain something to me? I was getting mail before the lockout, the strike was a rotating strike, IMO a very responsible way of protesting while impacting us in a minimal way, Toronto was supposed to be on strike for 2 days only, I think we can all live for 2 days without mail.

So when did it become a disaster exactly? Or do you want me to believe that you think the workers FORCED CPC's hand in declaring the lockout?

Actually I do agree with you on one point: they should ALL quit are give CPC the finger. Too bad they have families to feed.

What happened here seems pretty clear to me: Harper wants to get rid of unions, he used the CPC to polarize the public about this "issue", so a lot of people now hate unions because "they are just protecting lazy workers", I wouldn't be surprised if there were more "incidents" in the future.

Divide et impera, Caesar et Machiavelli docet.

[ray schrauwen]

If you were as tuned into this strike as much as I was, am... you would see neat little things like how Lisa Raitt the Minister of Labour did such a smashing good job for Harper in the CPC fiasco that she has recently been chosen, appointed to sit on the Committee that is undertaking a cross-government review to find savings in Ottawa. You could read between the lines here and see more Union busting plans....

Raitt is "absolutely thrilled" to be part of the review, I bet. Maybe she gets a big bonus this year if she can grind away a few more pennies from the foot soldiers that actually do the work. Doyou think she will look up to find savings of 32 billion or will she look down like all politicians seem to do?

Maybe I can get her voted out...??? Who knows...

[ray schrauwen]

...and yes there are immigrants willing to take the non-unionized jobs etc... these are some of the same type of people that illegally live 3 or 4 families to a house in order to create a hive type family to reduce overhead and build capital.

Good idea in concept, illegal though & stinky at times.

[Doby]

Doby, can you explain something to me? I was getting mail before the lockout, the strike was a rotating strike, IMO a very responsible way of protesting while impacting us in a minimal way, Toronto was supposed to be on strike for 2 days only, I think we can all live for 2 days without mail.

So when did it become a disaster exactly? Or do you want me to believe that you think the workers FORCED CPC's hand in declaring the lockout?

Actually I do agree with you on one point: they should ALL quit are give CPC the finger. Too bad they have families to feed.

What happened here seems pretty clear to me: Harper wants to get rid of unions, he used the CPC to polarize the public about this "issue", so a lot of people now hate unions because "they are just protecting lazy workers", I wouldn't be surprised if there were more "incidents" in the future.

Divide et impera, Caesar et Machiavelli docet.

Not sure I ever made a comment about lack of mail being a disaster?? I todays electronic society, mail delivery (other than boat parts) isn't really needed at all. I think the actual real whiner here is Ray, as he started this thread

Unions had their place and time...now they need to be told where their place actually is. Employees work for companies...not the other way around. Anyone who thinks they are under paid or don't like the work conditions they have, are free to leave, set up their own buisness and then have fun dealing with their new employees and potentially unions. Bet they would be singing a different song then about employee rights etc...

I have only worked for non-unionized companies.....you negotiate a salary , time off etc, sign the letter of employment....and perform a function. They give me a paycheck every two weeks...If I don't work to their satisfaction, I get fired...pretty simple arangement that works for lots of people without strikes that are ALWAYS about the same thing...$$$$$$$..it always boils down to $$$$$ no matter what BS line they try and tell everyone.

[kookie_guy]

Or do you want me to believe that you think the workers FORCED CPC's hand in declaring the lockout?
What happened here seems pretty clear to me: Harper wants to get rid of unions, he used the CPC to polarize the public about this "issue", so a lot of people now hate unions because "they are just protecting lazy workers", I wouldn't be surprised if there were more "incidents" in the future.

The workers did not force CPC into the lockout. The UNION did when it failed to give the workers an opportunity to vote on, and most likely accept, a very generous offer. I'm sure there are plenty of good workers, however, that 1% that gives them a a bad name ARE protected by the union. Like Doby says later, if you don't perform to the standards you agreed to and signed up for, you should be fired, union or not.

...and yes there are immigrants willing to take the non-unionized jobs etc... these are some of the same type of people that illegally live 3 or 4 families to a house in order to create a hive type family to reduce overhead and build capital

Those are generally the people who will milk the welfare system, working a job for cash. They have no intentions of getting a legitimate job. That's another problem for a whole other discussion. My wife has worked and paid into EI since 16 years old. When she got laid off (automotive) after 12 years, she had to fight her ass off so she could go back to school and have EI cover it. But the welfare guy who has no intentions of working and contributing to that EI system is taken care of. But back to the point, there are plenty of decent hard working Canadians who are unemployed willing to take the job.

stinky at times.

Unions had their place and time...now they need to be told where their place actually is. Employees work for companies...not the other way around. Anyone who thinks they are under paid or don't like the work conditions they have, are free to leave, set up their own buisness and then have fun dealing with their new employees and potentially unions. Bet they would be singing a different song then about employee rights etc...

I have only worked for non-unionized companies.....you negotiate a salary , time off etc, sign the letter of employment....and perform a function. They give me a paycheck every two weeks...If I don't work to their satisfaction, I get fired...pretty simple arangement that works for lots of people without strikes that are ALWAYS about the same thing...$$$$$$$..it always boils down to $$$$$ no matter what BS line they try and tell everyone.

Agreed 100%

[ray schrauwen]

My last employer treated me like crap, like a piece of dog meat. Maybe you have the cash flow to quit a job at anytime but, the majority of people need to secure a new job before they quit their old one. I tried to find work whilst being whipped like a dog everyday, not an easy task when single in a wheelchair taking care of everything myself.
So now I could not find work, used up my life savings and now I'm on ODSP. Not the most fun place to be. I'd rather be working but, not if I'm treated like crap.
You like being a commodity for the work force? There was a time when honest days work gave an honest days pay (with some respect) but, that isn't as easy to achieve as it used to be.

Ya, lets get rid of any benefits an employee should deserve for doing physical work, who needs it?

Incrementalism will one day have you eating plain rice & water to survive and saying "it could be worse ya know!"

[ray schrauwen]

This is what I worked on last: http://www.the-bow.com/

I programmed a 10' x 20' CNC Routher in Mastercam X3 to cut the aluminum Diamaond facade peices.

Pieces were cut on a WOOD table that in the uncontrolled envioronment could not hold tolerance. This was MY fault how??? Because I could not compensate for wood swelling or shrinking on any given day or minute.

Not until he hired a second person to take my place and constructively dissmiss me with a lay-off, did he realize that I was right.

He made tons of money off my programming and still does.

I'll spare you the 18 years of crap at my previuos job.

[Doby]

Ray, everybody is a commodity in the workforce. We would all rather be rich and living the good life, but we go to our jobs and pay our taxes to pay public workers...so they should be expected to work as well. Is it wrong for the employer to be upset when people strike???

Its not rocket science.

As for your past employer making money off your programming..if someone is hired to do programming and their employer makes money off it, and still does....well, thats the way of life...we are hired to make money for our employers. They pay salaries to employees to make them money.

[ray schrauwen]

I don't mind him making money off my programming, it's how he treated me that was so damaging.

When you out to Boxwood next? I want to run boats and forget all this. I'm getting a headache....

I've figured out the lateness thing but, it's going to take some time to fix. I'm getting off Paxil because it is really bad for my health.

This is also why I get bouts of anger....

No hard feelings eh?

[Punisher 67]

Unions had their place and time...now they need to be told where their place actually is. Employees work for companies...not the other way around. Anyone who thinks they are under paid or don't like the work conditions they have, are free to leave, set up their own business and then have fun dealing with their new employees and potentially unions. Bet they would be singing a different song then about employee rights etc...

I have only worked for non-unionized companies.....you negotiate a salary , time off etc, sign the letter of employment....and perform a function. They give me a paycheck every two weeks...If I don't work to their satisfaction, I get fired...pretty simple arrangement that works for lots of people without strikes that are ALWAYS about the same thing...$$$$$$$..it always boils down to $$$$$ no matter what BS line they try and tell everyone.

I have to agree with John on the unions , back in the day they had their place but see little need today , We haven't had a raise in 5 years but you don't see me complaining have you taken a good look around . the company offers overtime and we have a yearly profit share / bonus pkg that can easily climb to over 10K if your work enough overtime . I listen to many complaining about money all the time and just by coincidence the same people that never stay extra hours for more $$$$$ . I work with many that tend to think they are underpaid I beg to differ . Our janitor who is on the lowest pay scale can easily make over 60k a year but he stay the extra time and makes a huge difference for himself .

Every Monday you hear people wining about having to go back to work .......Really . here is a thought for you......would you rather be in an unemployment line on a Monday instead or better yet be in Afghanistan or Iraq in 125* heat in a full uniform with 40 pounds of gear dodging bullets for half the pay on a Monday . But no here you are making a good $$$$ safe and sound with a well paid job so shut the F_CK-UP cause it sures the hell could be worse .

My Monday rant on a wednesday...................... Sorry if I got a little carried away but I tend to see many living in a dream world


Oh John I corrected both of our spelling errors................................my spell check is my best friend

[ray schrauwen]

Our janitor who is on the lowest pay scale can easily make over 60k a year but he stay the extra time and makes a huge difference for himself .

60K a year to be a janitor!? Where do I sighn up!? I'll do it for half that. Send me a link!

[Punisher 67]

I don't mind him making money off my programming, it's how he treated me that was so damaging.

When you out to Boxwood next? I want to run boats and forget all this. I'm getting a headache....

I've figured out the lateness thing but, it's going to take some time to fix. I'm getting off Paxil because it is really bad for my health.

This is also why I get bouts of anger....

No hard feelings eh?

Ray I have little tolerance for people that gain from other peoples idea's and step all over them , I feel for you my friend that is just plain selfish and ignorant

You have a PM Ray , our Janitor puts in between 400 - 500 hrs a year O/T . Its up to you on what you bring home nobody is going to just hand it to you