Strike!
The last two weeks when going to gaming I've walked by a group of strikers out in front of Berkeley Honda. Last week there were about 20 people, as well as a giant, blow-up rat. This week there were just 2 or 3.
The disagreement is, I'm sure, complex. The strikers say that new management came in and laid off half the union workforce, then replaced them with people with no experience. Management, I'm sure, would say that they took over a business that was losing money, and they're making necessary cuts to turn it around. However, my sympathy for the workers was assured in this particular disagreement by management's reaction.
What do you do when you have a workforce of people out on the street? You paint a huge sign in your window that says,
STRIKE SALE!
Jerks.
It looks like BART is about to strike too, and I have considerable less sympathy there. As this article reports BART station agents and train operators are the best paid in the country, while utility operators are #5. Starting salaries run around $60,000 for the first two and $50,000 for the third. 10% of the workforce makes more than $100,000, and 1/3rd of those folks are not management. Now, our Cost of Living may be high in the Bay Area, but I also know what $60,000 is worth out here. It's enough to make me want to try and get a job as a station agent or train operator.
Meanwhile I'm going to be paying at least $.15 more on every BART ride starting soon. As it is I already pinch my pennies to afford the weekly trip to EndGame and back.
Jerks.
The disagreement is, I'm sure, complex. The strikers say that new management came in and laid off half the union workforce, then replaced them with people with no experience. Management, I'm sure, would say that they took over a business that was losing money, and they're making necessary cuts to turn it around. However, my sympathy for the workers was assured in this particular disagreement by management's reaction.
What do you do when you have a workforce of people out on the street? You paint a huge sign in your window that says,
STRIKE SALE!
Jerks.
It looks like BART is about to strike too, and I have considerable less sympathy there. As this article reports BART station agents and train operators are the best paid in the country, while utility operators are #5. Starting salaries run around $60,000 for the first two and $50,000 for the third. 10% of the workforce makes more than $100,000, and 1/3rd of those folks are not management. Now, our Cost of Living may be high in the Bay Area, but I also know what $60,000 is worth out here. It's enough to make me want to try and get a job as a station agent or train operator.
Meanwhile I'm going to be paying at least $.15 more on every BART ride starting soon. As it is I already pinch my pennies to afford the weekly trip to EndGame and back.
Jerks.