Go Wobblies
On Friday night I had a great dinner with my friends Heather and Patrick from Winnipeg and their three adorable children. We had Ethiopian food at Fasika in Saint Paul. They are in town for the General Assembly of the IWW, which is going on this weekend right here in the Twin Cities.
I was a Wobbly, delegate, acting branch secretary-treasurer and member of the union executive board up until around 2001 - I think - when the branch dried up and died, I resigned from the e-board, and soon thereafter stopped filing reports. I just plain burned out and there was no one here to support me. I still have regrets about those days, but things just went the way they did.
Sometimes the old growth has to die off for something new to happen. A few years later, there was a new branch going here with entirely new people, doing street protests and surprise, actual on-the-job organizing. Now there is an IWW Starbucks union and, most recently, a daring new campaign to organize Jimmy John's.
It brings a tear to my eye. I'm going to sign up again and be a dual-carder as I was in years past, IWW and ATU.
We may be on the verge of another transit strike in the Twin Cities, and my other union, ATU Local 1005, could certainly use support.
Edit: I should make it abundantly clear that I do not speak for Metro Transit or for ATU Local 1005. Also, even to say "may be on the verge" is probably less than responsible of me.
So here are the facts: the union was given a contract offer. Union members voted it down with 98% voting No. Union leadership and management are still talking. I am sure neither of them care to negotiate through the media, which includes people's personal blogs, so that is probably about all I should say on the topic for now.
I was a Wobbly, delegate, acting branch secretary-treasurer and member of the union executive board up until around 2001 - I think - when the branch dried up and died, I resigned from the e-board, and soon thereafter stopped filing reports. I just plain burned out and there was no one here to support me. I still have regrets about those days, but things just went the way they did.
Sometimes the old growth has to die off for something new to happen. A few years later, there was a new branch going here with entirely new people, doing street protests and surprise, actual on-the-job organizing. Now there is an IWW Starbucks union and, most recently, a daring new campaign to organize Jimmy John's.
It brings a tear to my eye. I'm going to sign up again and be a dual-carder as I was in years past, IWW and ATU.
We may be on the verge of another transit strike in the Twin Cities, and my other union, ATU Local 1005, could certainly use support.
Edit: I should make it abundantly clear that I do not speak for Metro Transit or for ATU Local 1005. Also, even to say "may be on the verge" is probably less than responsible of me.
So here are the facts: the union was given a contract offer. Union members voted it down with 98% voting No. Union leadership and management are still talking. I am sure neither of them care to negotiate through the media, which includes people's personal blogs, so that is probably about all I should say on the topic for now.