BOC Wk 10: Getting Fired

It was in 1993 at a business called, Earth in Upheaval. I was hired for highend detailing of the customers cars. The cost of one detale started from $ 300.50 - $700.00 per car. Mind you, this is bases on both racial discrimination and what I said. Ifrst of all I enjoyed working there despite the owner. We still do not like eachother even to this present day. It all started one summer, as four of us, this included the owner as well as two micanics and my self, we were pushing a car in to the shop. I was asked a question from the owner, and he said, “Hey Kevin, are you jewish?” My reply was f--- no, I am German.  The owner stopped and stood erect and walked back in to the shop. All the micanics heard what I said, and one cameover and stated that, “I can’t believe you just said that,”  Their was a coowner who also worked as the leat micaninc and, he walked out to me and reminided me of why the owner reacted the way he did. He stated to me, “he was a llittle by when he was pursicuted and branded for being a Jew by the German SS.”

In my defence, I replied that I was not the one who branded him, and that just beacause he only hires Jewish workers that does not give him the right to attack me on where I was borne. There was one insident when he was on the phone with a customer, and they were yelling at each other over the phone. I was standing in front of his desk, and  he had a wrench in his hand and he threw it  on his desk and it ended up bouncing about five feet in the air. As it was in the air, I said to him staring straight at him and said, “you better hope that does not hit me, I will throw it back at you if it does.” The entire shop went silent as the wrench just missed my face by two inches. He had the gull to ask me to pick up the wrench and hand it to him. In my discuss I stated, “you threw it you pick it up.” I then proceded out of the shop and went back to detailing a customers car who in return saw the whole thing and gave me a $250.00 tip for an intreging intertainment moment.

Since that time,  we were on talking terms of work only and what was needed done and that was it. Around a month later, he asked me what I do besides working here, and I stated that I do car detailing on the weekends. A month or so went by and he came out side and fired me due to I was German and that I was working for my self as well. I ended up getting even with him by reporting him to a friend of mine who investigated illegal dumping of toxi chemicles. My former employer ended up getting a very huge fine for dumping automotive chemicles into the near by creek that has a constent flow of water. In the end I have not regret except for I was young, and I should have reported him to the California Labor Commissions Office.

EOC Wk9: Personal Freedon Vs. Union Membership

1.       What would you do if you wanted to work for a company and you had to join the union to get the job?

a.       To me, a union is a false safe of security. Its like going camping knowing that where you are camping there is a 99% chance of getting attacked by a Grizly Bare, and you think you are safer inside a tent. This is the same with the union. In this case, I would decline the offer to work for that company. In these trying times, the union is for thouse who do not  want to work hard or don’t want to work at all. If you are an asset then why do you need a union to tell you what to do or not to do. And it is ususaly by one of your peers that is doing all negociations.

2.       What if they called a strike over an issue you did not agree with?

a.       In this case, like may other cases for instance, Safeway grocrie store chain in California was constantly on strike every other month. As a union worker you have no choice but to strike, if you crossed the line you were considered a trator and eventualy you would get fired by your union peers.  Why then not save your self and your family fron the greif. Resign and move on to a better carear.

3.       What other issues night concern you if you HAD to belong to get a paycheck?

a.       There was a company I worked for back in mid ninties, where some of the workers wanted the company to go union. All in all, it was a long proccess and at the end, the company also was in a position where they were being bought out. The end result was, if the workers go union, maby they might have a chance on saving their job. In the end, during the union vote in, the workers were harrased by management that they will loose their job if the voted for a union. Well, needless to say there was no vote, and  yet those individuals lost their job on account of the company was down sizing and was sold.  There is a lot of concern belonging to a union and getting the proper pay, due to the pay is usually starts out small ant taps out around $15.00 per hour or if you are luckey $18.00 per hour. No Thanks, If you do your job you do not need a union.

BOC Wk9: History of Labor Unions in the United States

I have found a Web sight that gives an great analagy of what history has to say about the United States Union acts. Also, I feel obligated to let you read the article your self. I do not want to quote all what was said due to it is a good written gathering of history on the labor unions here in the United States. To read this article fallow this link. Read more: labor union: In the United States — Infoplease.com http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/bus/A0861691.html#ixzz16tMt5MrV

Acording to most of what information I have read, the labor union arose in the second half of the ninteenth centry. It brought a great major change in the way people worked. This is when the mass industrial age started to introduce machines that were made for mass production. This led to less skilled individuals and, this ended up making employeers take advantage of their employees due to, no job was secure. Samuel Gompers helped  found the American Federation of Labor in 1886, in hopes to create a union for all workers. More often then not, minorities, women, immigrants, and the unskilled workers were often left out.

During the 1930’s, workiers started to demand pay raises and better job security. Of course employeers started rejecting their demands and thus, a wave of strikes swept across our country. Most often strikes ended up in violance of some sort. On Memorial Day in 1937, several thousand workers demonstrated in front of the Republic Steel Plant in South Chicago. Angry words were exchanged, followed by a thrown pop bottle. Shots were fired and tear gas grenades were thrown into the crowd. Ten strikers died, and 90 others were wounded in the protest.

Quote, “Carrying American flags and singing union songs, the marchers-- men, women and a few youngsters--formed a long line as they crossed the grassy field. Their destination was the main gate at Republic Steel's South Chicago plant on the city's Southeast Side, but facing them were about 150 Chicago police. (www.chicagotribune.com/news/politics/chi-chicagodays-republicsteelstrike-story,0,7125620.story).