I have worked at both union and non-union shops. Each has its advantages and disadvantages. One aspect of a union is a collective voice to management. In the past at Gulfstream, management would listen to the concerns from the floor, many of which were addressing waste or barriers keeping them from being productive. This created a spirit of teamwork with everyone having a stake in the outcome. Obviously, this is no longer the case.
A union also brings many aspects that the workforce is opposed to due to their broad reaching nature. An answer would be a voice from the workforce at the decision making table. Let the people who make the product help management see the advantages gained or pitfalls involved with current process and controls. Not an annual survey, but active involvement at the team/ station and department decision making. This would also create dialogue and understanding during the decision making process.
We don’t need a union, but we do need more workforce representation at all levels within the organization. Some sort of organization, where issues are identified to leadership, whether an improvement to a process or a workplace environment issue and management is required to answer these concerns.
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What you describe has been prevalent at Gulfstream for a long time. It is a token gesture at best because everyone knows that the only reason management does those things is to try and manipulate what they hope are naive employees to do what they want. Gulfstream is 100% a top down company now. GD & Gulfstream executives set the revenue objectives & management does whatever it takes to appease them. Then when the executives and management screw up or the market shifts down, they take from the blue collar workers & non-management employees to try and meet their numbers. From this day forward, the only way for us workers to get a fair deal will be to create the barrier between executive & management oppression that only a union contract can provide. Collective bargining gives us the power to say to leadership that our relationship will no longer be a one way street where we always lose. Company leadership and the union will sit at the table as equals and must come to a mutually agreed upon contract that spells out the terms of employment. We can no longer allow them to make us pay for their mismanagement in the form of poor working condition and reduced compensation & benefits. We worked hard to build the Gulfstream brand and we should fight to fairly benefit from it.