What Is The Twu?

[Bob Owens]

Father Hegartys definition of Industrial Unionism;
(edited)

The Structure of the Industrial System
A labor organization to correctly represent the working class must have two things in view.

First—It must combine the wage-workers in such a way that it can most successfully fight the battles and protect the interests of the working people of today in their struggle for fewer hours, more wages and better conditions.

TWU fails here. Over the last twenty years they have extended the workweek by eliminating the 8 hour day, making it 8.5 hours for 8 hours pay. They have eliminated one week of vacation to the point where for the first five years of employment they only have one week of vacation. They have negotiated defacto paycuts for twenty years and recently a 17.5% paycut. They have negotiated away workrules and benifits to the companys favor.

Secondly—It must offer a final solution of the labor problem—an emancipation from strikes, injunctions, bull-pens and scabbing of one against the other.

It fails again here. The TWU negotiated work away from one group to another lower paid group. Basically thats scabbing. Our fellow TWU members scabbed our work under the directive of their Union! They did the work that was ours for less money.


All workers of one industry in one union; all unions of workers in one big labor alliance the world over.

Here they fail again. Our industry is split up between several so called Industrial unions. Each one has their own seperate piece of the pie and the TWU is willing to sell out their members to get a bigger slice of the pie. THey are willing to violate the very first concept of Industrial Unionism, fewer hours, more wages and better conditions in order to get more members.


So the TWU claims that they are an Industrial union, yet they will organize workers from ANY industry, and not seek to unite any whole industry. From fishing wheel assembly workers to casino workers to subway, bus and airline workers the TWUs apparant agenda is to collect dues from wherever they can get them. In the meantime all those different industrys workers remain divided up among many other so called Industrial unions. Its not a matter of following any particular industry, its more a matter of grab what you can wherever you can. Thats not Industial unionism, its business unionism.

Business unionism is the scourge of the labor movement. Its goal is not to really better the conditions of its members but to claim that is what they are trying to do while the select few, who have successfully isolated power in themselves make themselves rich off the spoils.

The TWU can not be called an Industrial union, since you can not clearly define what Industry they specialize in. They are certainly not a craft union. They are in fact a business union.

Airline workers can no longer afford to support business unionism. The time has come. AMFA and the AGW now!

 

[local 12 proud]

SO BOB, I GUESS IT'S A SAFE BET TO SAY THE T.W.U. IS REALLY JUST A COMPANY LAPDOG UNION, NOT EVEN A INDUSTRIAL UNION! REALLY NEVER LOOKED AT IT THAT WAY BUT YOU BRING A VERY GOOD POINT TO SURFACE. :huh:

 

[Bob Owens]

SO BOB, I GUESS IT'S A SAFE BET TO SAY THE T.W.U. IS REALLY JUST A COMPANY LAPDOG UNION, NOT EVEN A INDUSTRIAL UNION! REALLY NEVER LOOKED AT IT THAT WAY BUT YOU BRING A VERY GOOD POINT TO SURFACE. :huh:

Yea, in reality it should be TWU Inc, or better yet TWU NLC(No Liability Corporation as opposed to LLC).

Airline workers have been stuck in this position where we were merely another source of dues to these business/company unions that claim to be Industrial unions, the fact is all they wanted was our dues, none of them really cared about the members. Under the CAB and regulation it did not matter all that much, we did well anyway, but the structure has completly collapsed under deregulation. Deregulation presented a burden which the structure could not support. If we look at the pilots they have not been set back nearly as much as we have. When the industry became deregulated a top paid pilot made about double that of a top paid mechanic, now they make around four times what we make. That does not mean that they have done all that well, they, in their craft unions that are industrial(re aviation), have held their own better than we have with our business unions.

Industrial unionism is a valid concept. The key is to get the entire industry into the one union, then it can work. The Longshoremans union is one such example. However when you take an industry and split it up along corporate lines the unions end up competing for more "market" share, as far as members by doing what they can to make the company where they represent workers expand by either undercutting other unions or agreeing to non-union type wages and working conditions, like we did. The no-raid clause made this undercutting of other unions pretty much inevitable since the members could not easily discard their union in favor of another.

The recent strike of supermarket workers on the west coast failed basically because the unions have failed to organize Walmart. Walmart sits there with their low wages and their low wholesale costs which they then use to lure in consumers and drive other businesses out of business. In order for those workers to ever earn a decent living they must get Walmart- the largest retailer and private employer in the country, unionized and on the same page.

In our Industry the AMR/TWU teaam is the Walmart of the Industry. The fact that we supposedly have a union means nothing. This union has provided AMR a cost advantage for over twenty years. The TWU has even provided AMR a cost advantage over non-union Delta. AMR has used this cost advantage to drive out competition. Other workers in this industry are continually pressured to give up wages and benifits due to the contracts at AMR with the TWU. So there is a lot more riding on the drives at AA than just us. The fate of all airline workers is just as affected by what happens at AA as supermarket workers are affected by Walmart.

Fleet service workers need to get into one union across the entire industry, they would be the aviation equivelent of the Longshoremen. Aircraft mechanics need to all get into AMFA, this includes third party providers. The Flight attendants need to consolidate, as well as the pilots. The challenge for those groups is for the leading unions, the AFA and ALPA to adapt to a more democratic and less autocratic structure so the independants would be willing to merge.

 

[Checking it Out]

The supermarkets settled their contract on the west coast! You all can continue to shop at these locations. Word has it; It cost the companies over 700 million in lost sales during the strike!

 

[Hopeful]

CIO:

Isn't it amazing that grocery workers can cause such havoc. Yet the TWU would never dream of striking the airline! Thje TWU has never even come close to causing the airline any worry. No wonder we continue to take it in the shorts!

 

[Buck]

Did the unionized workers receive any of this $700 million?

 

[PRINCESS KIDAGAKASH]

The grocery workers settled allright. They agreed to what the grocery stores offered them before they struck. Now they have a "b" scale in the grocery business because the AFL-CIO couldn't go the distance! They needed that dues money badly to support political canidates that will vote against the AFL-CIO anyway!

 

[j7915]

The grocery workers settled allright. They agreed to what the grocery stores offered them before they struck. Now they have a "b" scale in the grocery business because the AFL-CIO couldn't go the distance! They needed that dues money badly to support political canidates that will vote against the AFL-CIO anyway!

So what is YOUR proposal for alternatives?

The strike did not hurt the customers, unfortunately here in Tulsa the alternative is to shop at Wal Mart.

That will really help the workers at Albertson's.

That is like the no-concessions at NWA, and judging from recent postings, is what is wished for at AA. Does it hurt the company to get to pay much less to outsource? Does it really help your career as a "professional" to work outside your "profession"?

Start making workable proposals to enhance employment in the industry.

Any fool can cut cost and keep pay high with layoffs. US industry is full off them. Too bad that everywhere except in Aviation they seemed to called CEOs, at the airlines its the "skilled A&P, professional and AMFA SUPPORTING"s that are eager to prove to the boss how un-necessary they are.

 

[j7915]

Yea, in reality it should be TWU Inc, or better yet TWU NLC(No Liability Corporation as opposed to LLC).

Airline workers have been stuck in this position where we were merely another source of dues to these business/company unions that claim to be Industrial unions, the fact is all they wanted was our dues, none of them really cared about the members. Under the CAB and regulation it did not matter all that much, we did well anyway, but the structure has completly collapsed under deregulation. Deregulation presented a burden which the structure could not support. If we look at the pilots they have not been set back nearly as much as we have. When the industry became deregulated a top paid pilot made about double that of a top paid mechanic, now they make around four times what we make. That does not mean that they have done all that well, they, in their craft unions that are industrial(re aviation), have held their own better than we have with our business unions.

Industrial unionism is a valid concept. The key is to get the entire industry into the one union, then it can work. The Longshoremans union is one such example. However when you take an industry and split it up along corporate lines the unions end up competing for more "market" share, as far as members by doing what they can to make the company where they represent workers expand by either undercutting other unions or agreeing to non-union type wages and working conditions, like we did. The no-raid clause made this undercutting of other unions pretty much inevitable since the members could not easily discard their union in favor of another.

The recent strike of supermarket workers on the west coast failed basically because the unions have failed to organize Walmart. Walmart sits there with their low wages and their low wholesale costs which they then use to lure in consumers and drive other businesses out of business. In order for those workers to ever earn a decent living they must get Walmart- the largest retailer and private employer in the country, unionized and on the same page.

In our Industry the AMR/TWU teaam is the Walmart of the Industry. The fact that we supposedly have a union means nothing. This union has provided AMR a cost advantage for over twenty years. The TWU has even provided AMR a cost advantage over non-union Delta. AMR has used this cost advantage to drive out competition. Other workers in this industry are continually pressured to give up wages and benifits due to the contracts at AMR with the TWU. So there is a lot more riding on the drives at AA than just us. The fate of all airline workers is just as affected by what happens at AA as supermarket workers are affected by Walmart.

Fleet service workers need to get into one union across the entire industry, they would be the aviation equivelent of the Longshoremen. Aircraft mechanics need to all get into AMFA, this includes third party providers. The Flight attendants need to consolidate, as well as the pilots. The challenge for those groups is for the leading unions, the AFA and ALPA to adapt to a more democratic and less autocratic structure so the independants would be willing to merge.

Bob, stop crying about the pilot's. I suspect you had the chance but wanted your's NOW, not put in the sacrifize and maybe not get the brass ring.

Stop trying to compare other employee groups to pilots. The legalities are totally different. I do agree with the inequity of the greater money spread. However lots of that is due to the Reagan years when suddenly it became fashionable for everyone to carry the same burden.

I have worked with far too many amts who were more concerned with the "unfairness" of the progressive income tax than with the fact that the big boys do get more out of Gov. and society. We should have paid more attention to the FARs and how they can be changed to our advantage.

You keep talking about the AFL-CIO/TWU dues machine. I suspect as a former TWU official and avid AMFA supporter you have already readied the dues deduction and forwarding forms for AMFA.

There have been several letters posted over the years from Delle warning/threatening members about failure to pay dues. AMFA collects the same amount, 2 hrs per months, however AMFA does not get involved in any of the political/social activities of the industrial unions. SO WHERE IS THAT MONEY GOING? And why?

One hour's dues per months should more than cover the negotiation budget, and a small office. AMFA's turnouts are no bigger than the TWU's I bet. Why pay for a large hall?

 

[Checking it Out]

The Defining Moment:
The Kent Avenue Sitdown Strike

For most young, struggling unions there comes a defining moment that truly tests the mettle of the organization's leadership, and the strength of the union's message. For TWU, that defining moment came less than three years after the union was founded in April 1934.

By 1936, TWU was openly representing workers employed by the BMT subway line, and by Christmas it had membership on every single transit line in New York City. TWU was now far more than an annoyance to the powerful transit bosses. It was a challenge the industry felt it had to repulse. Never before had the transit interests of New York City failed to crush a labor organization it could not control. Now, it decided, TWU must go -- before it grew any stronger -- before it became on other systems the menace it was on the IRT subway line.

Beakie (hired spies) reports indicated that the place to stamp it out was on the BMT, if possible, at the Kent Avenue powerhouse in Brooklyn where only 35 out of 505 men had signed TWU cards. Smash it here, management figured, and TWU's threat to the BMT was over. On January 23, 1937, the BMT fired three engineers at the Kent Avenue plant for union activity. They were three of the 35 TWU members out of the 505 workers in the plant. The company had answered TWU's challenge to its supremacy. This was its move to wipe out the upstart union once and for all. What would TWU do? What could it do?

Nothing happened on the 23rd, the day the three men were fired. Nor the following day. The next day was the 25th and management was beginning to relax as the day proceeded normally -- until 3 P.M. At that hour, exactly, the plant's huge doors closed on a "sit-in" of 498 men -- all wearing TWU buttons. This was what the union had decided in answer to the company's firings. Ninety-nine percent of the powerhouse workers supported TWU -- an incredible conversion of 463 men to the cause of industrial unionism.

Word of the "sit-in" swept through the system. Workers from all departments, from the shops and barns, from transportation, from station, from other powerhouses -- union men and non-union men -- converged on the Kent Avenue plant. They picketed; they organized food brigades; they surrounded the building and prevented the company police, strike-breakers and the strong-arm squads from breaking through the barricaded doors. Newspaper reporters and camera men who came to cover the story stayed to help in the lifting of food to the "sit-ins" through windows some fifteen feet above the street.

With the plant secured, and its members prepared for a long siege, TWU issued an ultimatum to the BMT: reinstate the three fired engineers by 6 A.M. tomorrow morning, the 26th, or the electric power will be shut off, affecting 2,400,000 BMT riders.

A half-hour before the deadline -- at 5:30 A.M. on January 26th -- the company bowed to TWU's ultimatum. The three men were reinstated unconditionally. There would also be a meeting between the union and management on the question of union recognition.

From this day forward the transit industry of the most transit dependent city in the United States was never the same. This was the turning point. For TWU, it opened the road to the building of a great industrial union: workers had seen it happen -- had seen TWU's "one for all and all for one" actually work. They signed membership cards by the thousands. For the transit bosses, it was the beginning of the end of their harsh and unquestioned control over the lives of the transit workers. The men whose backs they had bowed for decades had straightened up to walk erect with dignity.

From Kent Avenue, TWU buttons went up on every section of the transit system. TWU was on the march. In three years it had grown strong enough to take its place with other industrial unions which were revolutionizing the American mass production industries. In 1935 the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) had been formed by eight AFL international unions in the belief that industrial unionism as opposed to craft unionism was necessary for the organization of workers in the auto, steel, rubber and textile fields.

By 1937 the cry "CIO" was across the land. It had a powerful appeal to a young and vigorous TWU desirous of an affiliation more imaginative, more daring, and more militant than was available to it as Lodge 1547 IAM-AFL. Thus, in April 1937, following full discussion by all Sections, TWU voted to leave the Machinists Union and seek affiliation with the CIO.

TWU received its charter in the CIO on May 10, 1937. Five days later, the newspapers screamed in front page headlines that 92 percent of the IRT workers had voted for TWU as their collective bargaining representative. TWU had passed its test at Kent Ave. The union was here to stay.

 

[Bob Owens]

Bob, stop crying about the pilot's. I suspect you had the chance but wanted your's NOW, not put in the sacrifize and maybe not get the brass ring.


Who is crying about the pilots? I was simply comparing situations. Are you saying that the TWU never makes comparasions with other workers to make a point? Clearly the point was critical of our performance with the TWU, not theirs with their "Stand Alone Independant Union".

Stop trying to compare other employee groups to pilots. The legalities are totally different. I do agree with the inequity of the greater money spread. However lots of that is due to the Reagan years when suddenly it became fashionable for everyone to carry the same burden.

Totally different? Oh really? What, are they gods? Doesn't it boil down to supply and demand and what the union is willing to fight for? You are saying that it has nothing to do with the pilots willingness to fight? Your statement contradicts itself, on the one hand you say that the pilots are special so their standard of living is maintained then claim that under Reaganism it became fashoinable for everyone to carry the same burden. What are you saying?

Under Reagan the burden was shifted down, away from the wealthy and on to the working class. Is your loyalty to the TWU spinning your perception of union viewpoints? Most unionists believe that under Reaganism, and ever since that working people have suffered declining real earnings while the rich have seen massive increases.

I have worked with far too many amts who were more concerned with the "unfairness" of the progressive income tax than with the fact that the big boys do get more out of Gov. and society. We should have paid more attention to the FARs and how they can be changed to our advantage.

I agree. Progressive taxation is fair. It is fair because wealth inequality threatens democracy, and democracy is supposed to be what we as a society place the most value upon as far as non-secular issues. I agree about the FARs, but dont we pay dues to an organization that should look out for and inform us of those issues? They have failed to do so. They are not capable of doing so because as an organization they represent too many different types of workers with different objectives. The TWU is unable to provide the focus that we need.


You keep talking about the AFL-CIO/TWU dues machine. I suspect as a former TWU official and avid AMFA supporter you have already readied the dues deduction and forwarding forms for AMFA.

Well actually just the TWU dues machine. I feel that the AFL-CIO can be a valuable tool to any union an would endorse AFL-CIO affiliation once the ptrimary objective of unifying our class and craft under one organization has been accomplished. And yes I will gladly pay dues to AMFA.

There have been several letters posted over the years from Delle warning/threatening members about failure to pay dues. AMFA collects the same amount, 2 hrs per months, however AMFA does not get involved in any of the political/social activities of the industrial unions. SO WHERE IS THAT MONEY GOING? And why?

What are you saying? Are you saying that our dues are being used for political purposes with the TWU? Thats illegal you know. Right now AMFA admittedly has limited resources that are being used for organizing. We both know that the campain that is now underway is expensive. And organizing must take priority at this time over politics. I will support more political involvement by AMFA once it has achieved the objective of organizing all the airlines that can be organized.

One hour's dues per months should more than cover the negotiation budget, and a small office. AMFA's turnouts are no bigger than the TWU's I bet. Why pay for a large hall?


I agree on the Hall. But I would be willing to pay double what we are paying now to fund the effort to organize the entire craft and class. That would be an "investment". By the way what does the TWU do with the $9 million they collect from our class and craft? Oh yea, they spend it on Halls and luxurios offices on 1700 Broadway, the most expensive real estate in the country. Sonny Hall said to me "Ugh, you know its important to have an impressive office like this, so you can impress who ever comes here. You know some unions have whole buildings? They ask me ;'you only have one floor?'"

Yea I bet that AA management was shaking in their boots when they heard the TWU got offices on Broadway!

 

[TWU informer]

Congress of Industrial Organizations

Founded 1935

Focus on Union Organization by Industry instead of by Craft

More open philosophy of membership than AFL

Eventually reunited with AFL in 1955

Committee for Industrial Organizations Founded (1935). The Committee for Industrial Organizations, later called the Congress of Industrial Organizations, was formed after the American Federation of Labor voted against organizing workers across trades in factories, continuing instead its traditional approach of organizing by craft or trade. The CIO, and its first president, John L. Lewis, proved visionary, opening the union door to what would become Labor’s core constituency -- mass production workers.

 

[Bob Owens]

Congress of Industrial Organizations

Founded 1935

Focus on Union Organization by Industry instead of by Craft

More open philosophy of membership than AFL

Eventually reunited with AFL in 1955

Committee for Industrial Organizations Founded (1935). The Committee for Industrial Organizations, later called the Congress of Industrial Organizations, was formed after the American Federation of Labor voted against organizing workers across trades in factories, continuing instead its traditional approach of organizing by craft or trade. The CIO, and its first president, John L. Lewis, proved visionary, opening the union door to what would become Labor’s core constituency -- mass production workers.

Organizing by industry is a valid concept, just as organizing by craft, but that is not what we have with our so called industrial unions, they organize along corporate lines. Thats more like Company unionism-organizing for a particular employer instead of the whole industry.

And none of the AFL-CIO unions in this industry have any intentions on changing this practice due to the "No Raid" provision of the AFL-CIO.

The only way to acheive true Industrial unionism would be to form a new union as with the AGW.

For us, since we have a craft, and an available craft union-AMFA the choice is clear.

 

[deadbolt]

It's interesting you use the Kent Sit-Down strike as a defining moment in the TWU! The Sit-Down strike was a new form of striking, the company had never seen before...you cannot lock them out, they lock the company out! What does a company do? This was cutting-edge!

After a new strategy has been used by the union, its only a matter of time before the company has one to top it!

What can be our new strategy to whip the company with; CHAOS???

Why use 1940-1950 style self-help!!! Lets try something new!

 

[Bob Owens]

It's interesting you use the Kent Sit-Down strike as a defining moment in the TWU! The Sit-Down strike was a new form of striking, the company had never seen before...you cannot lock them out, they lock the company out! What does a company do? This was cutting-edge!

After a new strategy has been used by the union, its only a matter of time before the company has one to top it!

What can be our new strategy to whip the company with; CHAOS???

Why use 1940-1950 style self-help!!! Lets try something new!

Unfortunately the only form of self help that the leaders of the ATD believe in is self helping themselves to our dues while also cutting a deal where they double dip with the company for another paycheck!