540
Building Trade Unions: Basic Concerns
543.3.2
The fears about security on the part of the unions find expression in
different ways. Perhaps the most important is the emphasis that the
unions now put on contract provisions dealing with job security.
Increasingly, unions are negotiating contracts providing substantial
payments for past service in the form of separation pay to employees
whose jobs are eliminated. Greater emphasis is being placed on
improvements in private pension plans that permit earlier retirement, with
increased pension benefits over and above payments provided by the
Federal Social Security Act. These plans increasingly provide that the
benefits accumulated over a number of years of service will not be lost if
the employee leaves the company prior to the age of retirement. (11)
543.3.3
While all union members want job security, there is some confusion about
how best to achieve it. In many cases, increased automation has led to
an increase in jobs. In addition, many union members believe, and this is
echoed in their national policies, that the technological advance will
continue and they must move with it.
543.3.4
"American labor reacts positively and with vigor to an industrial society
and encourages major technological advances. It realizes that it is only
through technology devoted to the purposes of man that the production of
goods can reach levels high enough for man to live with decency. While
recognizing theses goals of industrialism, labor's acceptance of
technology drives -- though sincere and hopeful -- remains tentative and
confused." (12)
543.3.5
The picture of union desire for security as related to technological change
seems to boil down to this: unions realize that change will continue to
take place, and want to be on the bandwagon, but individual union
members are afraid that they will be the one replaced by a machine. This
view is supported by a study of local unions by Leonard Sayles and
George Strauss:
". . . automation is a creeping phenomenon and one about which it is
difficult to formulate a clear union policy or to arouse clear membership
support. Normally it affects only a few workers at a time. The strong and
understandable desire of individual workers to hold on to what they have
encourages a certain amount of selfishness and makes unity behind job
protection measures difficult to achieve. One steward explained: The
members are divided on the basis of seniority.
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