• stardust@lemmy.ca
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    8 months ago

    Some industries are known for being predatory though, so it’s hard for workers to change anything when an industry can prey on an endless pool of applicants lining up to pursue their passion.

    And consumers are not reliable beyond bad press. Strong unions are the best hope, but that is much easier said than done.

    • Cyberspark
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      8 months ago

      Even unions can’t entirely stop mass layoffs. “we won’t work” isn’t much of a threat when you’re being fired.

      • Croquette
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        8 months ago

        Yeah but normally, if the union does its job, the employee that aren’t fired don’t work as well.

        The only way to make a company change is to hurt their bottomline.

        • Cyberspark
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          8 months ago

          Yeah, but in the numbers we’re seeing that’s of limited weight in negotiation. I’m not saying unions are bad, just this is one situation they struggle to counter.

          • Croquette
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            8 months ago

            Here, if there are enough workers, then they don’t need to join a bigger, external union because they have enough weight to change things.

            Otherwise, smaller companies where there isn’t a lot of workers, they can join a bigger union that has a lot more weight.

            A union isn’t magical, but it’s a great first step towards better conditions. But taking that first step is hard because workers have a lot to lose, especially if working in the US.