My benefits are just under 300 per pay for just myself. Another Christie thing. May be cheaper than some. But a lot more than most

My benifits are O meaning I don't have any (both retirement and healthcare) yet I have to pay a penalty for not having health insurance. But I guess I'll have to start a "thanks Obama" thread. That's why I laugh when I hear Union guys complain about anything. Don't get me wrong, if you are fortunate enough to be in a union, well then my hats off to you. But keep I mind as bad as you think you have it, 75% of us have it way worse.

I never said I think I have it bad. I am simply posting facts to combat made up stats. Can you show me the study that shows where 75% of people have it worse?

Lmfao, guilty.

Even as a Teamsters union we've worked 3 to 6 year spans without contracts.

union = people who claim to be there for others but they are really there to go on several fancy 5star vactions a year on the regular works dime. they call this union dues.


the above may sound far fetched and total bs but its the honest truth.

Sounds like your drinking the hater-aid my friend. There are good cops and bad cops... Don't be so quick to judge. Yes we have all seen the 12 guys standing around a hole while one guy digs... But that's not the case in all union jobs. I work 95% of the time by myself. If I don't do the job it doesn't get done, and if it's not done 100% right there's a price to pay.
Also I trade my 5star vacations that I earn for Racecar parts.

You know, when I read stuff like this I get pissed off.

There has been so much anti-union rhetoric pumped out to the general public, who generally have no idea what actually goes on, especially in public employment.

I've been a firefighter for 21 years. Every one of you that thinks we live high on the hog thanks to unions should walk a mile in my shoes before talking. Unions are not 'all powerful'. In fact, we barely hold our own against the politicians that run the department, who regularly wipe their ass with our contract and tell us to 'grieve it.' That entails lawyers and filing appeals with state work agencies and the department of personnel who just happen to be largely appointed by... politicians. This costs us a lot of money that we pay for out of our own pockets, and a lot of time that's not compensated at all.

Yep, we're all-powerful and just run everything. That's why I took a 12% pay cut to pay for medical with no negotiation whatsoever, and that's why the minuscule raises we've been getting don't even cover the rising cost of medical resulting in a loss in pay, year after year.

I know our union officers. They bust their asses 7 days a week at all hours of the day handling union business. They're not living large on my dime, and what little compensation they get hardly makes it worthwhile.

elle, you can feast on a bag of dicks. I work hard, risk life and limb, and wonder if I'm going to develop cancer from the god-awful crap I work in to save lives. Not a day goes by that I'm not haunted by memories of people I couldn't save at fires, or the twisted remains left in the wrecks of vehicles that cry as we're trying to cut them free. I see and deal with stuff that the average person couldn't (and shouldn't have to) handle.

LTB1low - Man, I sure hope you're kidding. I thought you were better than that.

Screw this, I'm out of here.

i wasn't talking about union jobs. i was refering to the union them selfs.

my grandfather was the vice president of a union. im fully aware of what those union dues got spent on lmao. union dues are not used in any way shape or form to help the unionize worker.

At that union maybe. You can't generalize all of them

I was just busting chops and don't even think of preaching to me about health insurance. Walk a day in my shoes as being self employed with paying taxes and health insurance.

It was far from a serious post and I think you took it the wrong way.

Chill out and get a different career if you can't handle the one you have.

Same could be said to you. Don't bitch about taxes and health insurance when no one forced you to make any decisions to start your own thing

Remember this thread was ONE member venting his personal situation. It was the team of anti Union crusaders that took it any further.

I'm not bitching. I know what it is. I'm stating that complaining about 12% and mine went up 20%. I thought it was ball busting but I guess it was more serious?? I will read it again. I do know it's thin skin on here and forget that sometimes.

What I posted was a take on the extreme end of a all to powerful union that sucks the life out of the business its working for. A generalization, sheesh.

Sadly everything I posted was happening at the end of Bendix.

I can handle my career. Been doing it for a long time before Crispie Cream started in with his anti-union propaganda and painted us all as greedy money grabbers. When you'e heard it as much as I have, especially in light of the work we do and the conditions we work in, it becomes a sore spot.

You make it sound as if I don't pay taxes *or* pay for health insurance. You are wrong, on both accounts. I pay payroll taxes, just like you. I pay sales tax, just like you. I pay property tax, too. I don't know if you own any property, so I can't say if that's just like you, too.

When I took my job, I did it know I'd never get rich doing it. I always figured that at least my family and I would have healthcare and I'd have a pension to look forward to. Part of the compensation for my work was the healthcare my employer provided.

Then Christie happened. As a result I took a 12% pay cut, just for healthcare. I also had another 2% taken out of my salary to go into the pension system. Being as that pension is my future, I have no problem with paying more into it. The healthcare thing was a complete dickpunch. It was a non-negotiated pay cut. Yep, sounds like us union workers have the system by the balls.

The yearly raises we get barely keep up with inflation and cost of living increases. Now when you add the 10-12% increases in medical every year, I'm taking home less money with each passing year. As a result I'm working two full time jobs to keep my head above water. Not so long ago I was at the point of selling off as much as I could to keep food on the table and the lights on. Fortunately the second job is keeping things going.

To make matters even better, my pension's been cut back as I now have to pay for medical in retirement which is another non-negotiated cut in benefits.

You *chose* to be self employed. It's a path you picked. Part of the self-employment is covering your own expenses, like medical. If your expenses are climbing, you need to produce more income... Work harder or charge more. Yeah, I sound like a dick but that's the reality of running your own business... Which I also used to do before I became a firefighter.

A couple of statistics:
54.8% - Percentage of the names on the IAFF memorial wall that have died due to cancer
1.53 - Number of times firefighters are more likely than the general population to develop multiple melanoma
57 - Average life expectancy of firefighters, in years
67% - Percent of cancer patients that survive at least 5 years
20 - Possible latency period in years between exposure and appearance of malignancies
35-45 - Average length of stay in hospitals for firefighters being treated for cancer

I'm ok with these risks. I signed up for them with the understanding that my medical and pension would be secure and not subject to cuts. Unfortunately, I'm too far in at this point to pack it in and change careers. I've paid my dues already.

Christie came up with his 'pension reform' that took from the workers. When it came time for him to pay up, he went to court and had sections of *his own reform* declared null and void. Specifically, the ones that required the government to live up to their end of the bargain. Yep, us unions just run the show.

I'm not arguing and I really don't care.

Once again, I thought it was a light hearted ball bust convo, you took it to heart.

*timeout*

this is why we have a no political post rule. nothing but fighting.