• blargerer@kbin.social
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        2 years ago

        Its a lot easier to support the UAW than the rail workers. Not because of the justice of the positions, but because rail workers striking paralyzes the entire country.

        • FuglyDuck@lemmy.world
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          2 years ago

          Biden could have forced the companies into more concessions. I mean, things like sickdays and having adequate coverage is just… good business…

          Or if the company refused to play ball, nationalized the companies under certain defende acts, instituted the reform (both in staffing, and safety compliance, and a few other areas,). But no. He elected to shaft labor- because the oligarchs couldn’t have that.

          • assassin_aragorn@lemmy.world
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            2 years ago

            Biden could have forced the companies into more concessions.

            Genuinely, what further actions could he have taken that wouldn’t just be virtue signaling? It looks like he did successfully force the companies to capitulate several months later.

        • ryathal@sh.itjust.works
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          2 years ago

          Id rather support rail workers, the UAW is a pretty shit tier union that’s far too large for it’s own good.

        • Ensign_Crab@lemmy.world
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          2 years ago

          Not because of the justice of the positions

          Because that was never a concern.

          but because rail workers striking paralyzes the entire country.

          Sounds like the railroads are too consolidated then. The remedies should be breakup or nationalization. But strikebreaking is easier.

      • NoneOfUrBusiness@kbin.social
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        2 years ago

        I mean tbf he then gave them their demands, just without paralyzing the economy.

        Edit: Apparently he didn’t.

        Edit2: Apparently he did.

        • FuglyDuck@lemmy.world
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          2 years ago

          no… he didn’t. the unions wanted paid sick days. Like. you know. pretty much every one except walmart and fast food workers. yes, only 4 unions were holding out, but all the unions wanted sick days. Also, keep in mind, the people in question are highly skilled with masters degrees. That’s part of the reason why it’s ‘hard’ to recruit for those positions- that and the absolutely batshit crazy working conditions.

          The things they were asking for would have been considered standard for almost any other sector at that level of skill… and really is just basic good-business-sense to give. But, like most stupid and greedy corps, they’re more worried about short term profits being hurt by the overhead of actually staffing adequately than they were about… employee health, the safety of their operations and literally everyone in the public nominally adjacent to their rail ways and yards. The paid sick days would barely even register on their quarterly reports.

        • Cryophilia@lemmy.world
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          2 years ago

          They actually did get their sick days. Biden continued pressuring the railways after the media coverage was over and the railways gave the unions everything they wanted.

        • Cryophilia@lemmy.world
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          2 years ago

          Only after the media extensively covers him breaking the strike, giving him negative press for that, but no good press for actually achieving the Union’s goals.

          I swear the Democrats are laughably bad at handling the media. It’s truly ridiculous.