- Connect
- Login
- Print Subscription
|
Welcome,
| |
| |
- Most Commented
- Most Commented
- Most Emailed
- Most Emailed
- Popular
- Popular
« News Home
American Standard workers remain on strike
-
ON THE LINE: Workers at American Standard Brands in Salem began to picket about 1 p.m. Friday over proposed cuts the company wants to make.
SALEM — Workers at American Standard Brands continued to strike after a meeting Friday with a mediator, management and officials of the United Steelworkers of America, Local 1538.
U.S. Rep. Charlie Wilson and Mayor Jerry Wolford were also involved. Wolford said earlier this week that he would do what he could if asked to take part.
Workers said the mediator called the meeting, which union president Rick Hands said produced scant results.
Hands said the union offered concessions, including on a wage bonus, but the company would not settle and no new talks were set.
Company officials could not be reached Friday evening.
For the full story, see Saturday's Vindicator or Vindy.com.
- Requires free registration.
Comments
I have seen it far too often. You bite the hand that feeds you so often that the one doing the feeding decides to move where they are welcomed, or worse yet to a location overseas where labor costs are pennies to our dollar. Be glad you have a union. It has helped you with your current working conditions, but do not expect too much from the company you work for today because today's company is not in the mood. As OldManGrump says, now is not the time! Just be glad you don't work for WalMart in Canada, as they closed down one of their stores to avoid union representation.
Pathetic. When the average wage is $17.90 an hour and you're asked to take a 5% for a 3 year period and you work in Columbiana County you should jump on it...just to be able to keep your job. There's plenty of people who would cross that picket line to work for less. How dare these people think that they are entitled to anything except a job. Companies are in business to make a profit and if they can't make the kind of profit they want around here..they will go elsewhere and I don't blame them. The contract being offered isn't even that bad. Maybe they should check the "help wanted" ads before they waste another day striking. The majority of these union people are unqualified to do anything other than what they are doing at their current jobs and don't stand a chance of finding anything paying close based on their skill levels.
$17.90 an hour equates to about $36,000 a year. In 2008 that is barley a living wage. Do you think you can save for your future, retirement, buy a home or send your kids to collage on $36,000 a year? Is your answer to work for pennies to our dollar?
It used to be that the worker drove a Chevy and the owner drove a Cadillac. The worker had a 1500 sq. ft. house and the the owner had a 4000 sq. ft. house.
We now live in the times of some CEOs making 20 million a year with 100 million pensions while they run the companies into the ground. In some cases they have 3 or 4 mansions, fleets of exotic cars and million dollar art collections.
Maybe you should take the time to get to know some of these strikers and you could help them on cutting back on their extravagant lifestyle.
Grump. All four of my grand parents were immigrants. Between their two families they raised 11 children, each family on only one income. Try explaining that to young people today that are trying to just get by.
The American workers wages have gone down $2,000 in the past eight years. I agree that jobs moving out of the country are a big part of the problem. The question is why did they move. I believe that unfair trade agreements are the main part of the problem. Companies move to China and use child labor and horrible working conditions to make an extra buck.
I just saw a spot today on one of the national news stations, (I think it was CNN, you could probably still see it because the run the same spots all day) anyway, the story was about a toy factory in China that shut down because of the economy. The people that worked at the factory worked for wages, meals and a place to live. They interviewed a woman that said they slept three to a bed, now she has no job no place to live and no food.
I can't understand how American workers are supposed to compete with that. Trade treaties should protect workers from any country that is part of the treaty but they seem to only take care of the CEOs I mentioned earlier.
I read comment after comment on the blogs in this paper that put down the working man and woman for wanting to have a little dignity for their days work and very little outrage for the greed of those CEOs.
cambridge: $36,000/year isn't too bad for those who never bothered to put the time in and get better educated to make more money. Why shouldn't a CEO make the money? They either had the ingenuity to start the company or put the years in at college, etc to get to where they are? American's are not entitled to anything. Want to make more money? Start your own business. Become your own CEO. Get a degree. Funny I know just as many employees at companies that drive vechicles comparable to the owners. It's all in where you spend your money. The problem is that the majority of America pays a heck of a lot more than just a mortgage and utilities because they felt that they were "entitled" to more and charged up a load of debt. Too bad. Work smart. Spend smart. Live within your means.
mw: We are talking about two different things. I agree with everything you said about bettering yourself to succeed and spending your money smartly.
The point I'm trying to make is that the American dream that existed when I was growing up doesn't seem to exist for the young people today. I can't understand how the average person today could be so against a person making $36,000 a year to want a little security for their family, and show so much support for CEOs, that in many instances make obscene amounts of money while running companies into the ground.
I could be wrong but I think the majority of people feel less secure in their lives in regards to health care, retirement, sending their kids to collage and just making ends meet week to week. I think you will agree that the price of everyday necessities are constantly going up and I don't think $36,000 a year is even keeping up.
I guess it's all relative to who you believe deserves what, but I do respect your opinion.
Dear American Standard Employees, Take the concessions and remain employed. I have had a health plan with a $4000 Family deductible for over two years and I am paying $170/mo. out of my pocket for it! Wake up, health care with $500 Family deductible and a $5 Prescription Card is long gone...unless of course you work for a school district, city, county, state, or the federal government.
Swallow your pride and keep your job. Get big-headed and end up working two minimum wage jobs. Good Luck AS Employees. Make the right decision.
Cambridge: I'm glad we can agree to disagree. I make slightly less than 36000 and my spouse makes approximately that. We are an extremely hard working family but that is because we both understand that if we want things in life we must work for them. I can only hope that I'll be a CEO one day and if I keep busting my butt maybe I'll get there. (It's not likely but it's nice to dream.) I agree with people wanting security for their family but it must be worked for very hard. College for our kids? They will get student loans just like I did and pay on them well into their adult years. Health insurance? I already had to take a 5% paycut at my employer within the last 10 years but I shut up and stuck it out to keep our health insurance. Retirement? We're all working until we're 70 whether we like it or not.
mw: You make my point with the description of your own life's experience. You just described a family that looks as though your doing everything right but are put in a position to have to give back while trying to get ahead. It's more of a struggle for a young family on two incomes than it was on one income fifty years ago. That makes no sense. The history of this country is that every generation lives better than the one before it. We shouldn't give up on that. That means that sometimes people have to do some drastic things, like go on strike. If you've got the gears and don't use them, you will definitely loose them. As was stated before, when it's gone it's not coming back.
In the world economy it seems that instead of the rest of the worlds workers quality of life rising to met ours, ours is dropping to met theirs. That's a very scary thought.
In today's economy and competitive world market, who do these people think they are complaining? Take the concessions and get back to work!
One would have thought after US Steel pulled out back in the late 70's that union workers would understand just how precious their jobs really are. Unions today put false hope into the minds of their members. In the end, when the worker has lost his job due to the closing of their factory, will they understand they've put their trust and well being with the wrong people!
Work hard and you will earn a good living. I've accomplished all this without the so called protection of a labor union!
Labor unions have traditionally enabled workers to better their conditions and wages, but they are now up against a force they cannot win against. Competition from a world market, facilities have become ancient, taxes, utilities, fuel costs and wages have risen to the point that managment only needs one good event to occur to convince them it is time to move on. There are many southern communities offering tax abatement, lower utility costs and a lower cost workforce, as well as offerings to help construct a modern facility. This has convinced many of our former area manufacturing centers to move. Going on strike also provides management with an opportunity to save costs during a down-turn in the economy. This cost savings builds their war chest and depletes the workers' savings. All of this provides a no-win situation for a strike. Now is not the time, you are only hurting yourself and your family!
RIP American Standard. That plant will be gone in a couple of years if the economy doesn't improve. They make products for new construction and remodeling which are the two things that decline in bad times. The strike will just hasten the demise of the company.
This gets played out over and over again and yet union members cannot seem to learn from past examples. Are they incapable of learning? That fact alone would be reason enough to keep me from hiring a union man.
When paragon industrys went on strike around march 2009,it held the same response as this. People need to understand that the golden age of unskilled labor jobs in mills and factories is long gone. I know there are many oppourtunitys to better ones self, ive made good use of several of them myself. Government and industry will give people a helping hand when it comes to making themselves more marketable in a highly competitive society, but it is not a handout. people need to take matters into there own hands instead of letting beurocrats make the decisions for them.