I really want to unionize my work place, but I'm worried that our store will shut down if we succeed. During our training we were shown anti-union propaganda videos to discourage us and many other people who work for the same company have even been shown videos that mention termination if union activities go on. My store specifically is last in our county, even though my department has been making $20,000+ in profit each month. Are situations like these common? (Sorry if I sound all over the place, ask box limits and all that)
Excellent question. It would take an entire two day session in an OT101 to answer you completely but I’ll do my best to address your concerns in this limited format.
To start with your last question—yes, anti-union propaganda of the sort you and your coworkers were to exposed to is extremely common, especially in the United States, if that is where you are.
It is illegal to terminate an employee for unionising efforts. All workers have the federally protected right to form a union but that does not and will not stop businesses from practicing illegal firings, intimidation and harassment if they so much as suspect organising efforts on the part of their employees.
Organising is dangerous. Getting fired can be catastrophic but it is not even the worst punishment this system will mete out in defense of the employing class. Workers on strike continue to get injured and killed by strike breakers and scabs. Organisers I personally know have been brutally attacked by police while on the picket line and have the permanent scars to show for it. If a strike is found to be “illegal” for any reason, the state will levy gratuitous fines and potential incarceration for workers it finds “guilty”.
And then, to your first point, even if a union campaign is or appears as though it might potentially be successful, the owners can always just cut their losses, pull up stakes, fire the entire staff and start fresh somewhere else.
That all sounds pretty scary, doesn’t it? Organising is a fight, plain and simple. The bosses have a playbook that has worked for them for a long time but what they don’t want you to know is we have a playbook of our own and it works when we follow it carefully and creatively.
You may have heard the phrase “Agitate, Organise, WIN!” Not to be glib but that’s what it can boil down to. When we organise safely, with attention and care, we win. Wins can be small. Wins can be big. When we organise correctly, we win and we win a lot more than you or any worker in this world will ever know.
Wins of the sort I have seen are not publicised. They are considered wounds to the bosses and bosses abhor the appearance of weakness, so most wins are played off as company policy or good management but the organisers know. The workers who won know what went into it behind the scenes.
The potential for loss is no reason not to fight. The stakes we face are all the more reason to organise right and organise right now.
Organising to win is a slow process. There aren’t any short cuts. It takes perception, communication, listening, learning, brainstorming, a lot more listening, getting angry, being frustrated, sharing joy and so much courage in the face of bad odds.
Organising can also be the most rewarding thing you’ll ever do.
Anyone can organise. You can start today if you want to badly enough. I can’t promise you’ll win. I can promise support and solidarity every step of the way.