Tuesday, January 20, 2015

Want To Be Happy? Join A Union!

It is well documented that unions bring direct and indirect benefits for its members and the
community at large.  Union members earn better wages, have better benefits and have safer working conditions.  Communities that enjoy a union presence tend to have less poverty and better education systems.

A recent study shows yet another benefit from belonging to a union - higher life satisfaction.

From the New York Times:
But a recent study may give some workers reason to reconsider. For those who belong to a union, membership seems to bring a benefit that perhaps surpasses better wages or generous health insurance: higher life satisfaction.

The study authors, Patrick Flavin, an assistant professor at Baylor University, and Gregory Shufeldt, an assistant professor at the University of Arkansas, Little Rock, used data from five different years between the early 1980s and mid-2000s, conducted in the United States, of the World Values Survey, a research project focusing on people’s beliefs. As they write in the report, they found that “union members are more satisfied with their lives than those who are not members and that the substantive effect of union membership on life satisfaction is large and rivals other common predictors of quality of life.”

[...]

Yet as Mr. Flavin and Mr. Shufeldt told Op-Talk in an email: “Labor union membership still has benefits, and that this is true for all union members. Simply put, if one goal of labor unions is to boost the quality of life for their members, our study provides empirical evidence that they are succeeding.”

In their study, they tease out four “pathways” by which being a union member might improve quality of life compared with not being a member: “These include having greater satisfaction with one’s experiences while working, feeling greater job security, being afforded numerous opportunities for social interaction and integration, and enhancing the participatory benefits associated with more engaged democratic citizenship.”
That last part needs to be emphasized: "enhancing the participatory benefits associated with more engaged democratic citizenship.”

The corporate special interests are not spending hundreds of millions of dollars to destroy unions just because of a few bucks but also for control of our government so that they can further their agenda of a plantation economy. As Thomas Donahue said: "The only effective answer to organized greed is organized labor."

AFSCME has quickly jumped on the good news and is spreading the word.  Along with that, they created this fun little video:



So when Scott Walker, Chris Abele and the other right wingers attack unions, you need to ask yourself why they want to take away your money, your benefits and your happiness.

17 comments:

  1. Translation: Pleeeeeeease join our union!? Not just because two teacher's assistants said it's a positive thing but because we're bleeding cash and membership.

    If you're a portly, Caucasian fellow in dire need of identity and belonging...try us! Will train the right hateful, exiled candidates.

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    1. Hey, Scooter was there promoting those Packers each and every season for finding those "good," jobs with high salaries and benefit packages that he insists is what he wants for all of us workers in this state. He must have had a, "calling," to support that organized labor group, eh? Praising the Pack for their labor leadership as an example for the rest of us to follow and you failed to figured out that was Walker's plan all along. Pay better attention to your leader and think twice about further bar time posting.

      Walker cheers for unionized labor, its a new day in Wisconsin.



      Portly, if you are a offensive lineman, I guess anonym'ass,' but you are just a bit off with your racial stereotypes, hatefulness or your disliked workers as "loosers," here aren't you?

      Delete
  2. So there's not much difference between getting a frontal lobotomy and joining a union, huh?

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    1. The only way a lobotomy and joining a union are similar: Scott Walker wants to control both. A lobotomized electorate and union busting are, after all, two key factors in his quest to be prezdent.

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    2. No. Not much difference between lobotomies and unions. Though, people with lobotomies can still have smart friends.

      All hail the sinking of the SS AFSCME! It didn't go down without a smell.

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  3. Actually, Wisconsin had the seventh largest growth in union membership in the nation. Not quite dying like you had hoped.

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  4. Serious question for capper: Why do you suppose the people least likely to perform a stitch of actual work are the biggest advocates of labor unions? The heads of these unions - especially public sector unions like AFSCME - tend to be corpulent, diabetic mouth breathers. Why is that, capper? Why do you suppose the rank-and-file union members fail to see the irony in that?

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    1. I see irony- in a dead- end loser like you trying to rip someone else's work habits and personal appearance.

      I don't even know who you are..,but yet I'm fairly certain I do. And you certainly seem to be a miserable sort who could use someone else having your back at your very disposable job.

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    2. well I believe that miots police are in fact corpulent mouth breathers as you say, what about nurses, physical therapists, bridge inspectors, court commisioners, prison guards, line workers from Harley Davidson, ship rights from Superior and all those thousands of other union workers i nthis state? I'm kinda thinking that with the excpetion of the nurses, most of those people are neither corupulent, nor without the wereithall to beat your lame ass to a pulp.....which You richly deserve, you neofascist piece of shit.

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  5. Act 10 stopped union activity at the Wisconsin Department of Corrections prison I work at. While conservatives continue to cheer the defeat of AFSCME, the consequences of this action is still being played out daily inside the prisons. There has been a large officer turnover, and a chronic shortage of replacement officers since Act 10.

    Right now, the DOC is trying to find a way to keep the job attractive enough so offiicers don't quit. The latest move from Madison DOC headquarters is to rotate the forced overtime through all the officers instead of by reversed senority. They believe it is more fair, and will make to job more attractive for officers just starting. I see it being just another post Act 10 negative job condition; that will now be a pain for the whole career, instead of just the first couple of years. Ultimately, this change will send an even greater number of officers to the exit. Mr. Wall has since came out with a request for an alternative (but didn't say he wasn't going forward with this change.) My suggestion would be to step back to managing together with AFSCME, it worked well for many years, and the officers were indeed much more happy as the article claims.

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  6. Ya, I remember a picture of capper leaning against a wall at some union function with his green afscme tee shirt on and must have been so happy to be in a union that it looked like he pissed himself!

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    1. I saw the same picture - it looked like he was wearing the beer tent. I think once you get as fat as capper, continence becomes a secondary concern.

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  7. Hey right side... remember we know who you are punk loser. One of your conservatives turned you in to me previously.

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    1. Yep, you'd better be careful, right side. The obese old white guys who populate this blog might fart on you!

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  8. I would think it would be an easy sell even if it isn't mandatory as you want to keep it. If there is no downside as you suggest.

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