My favorite union experience – back in the mid 90′s when my kids were toddlers, I took them to a lady who watched kids in her home two days a week when my wife worked. Her husband worked 3rd shift, 11p – 7a at LTV Steel. Every time I’d drop the kids off in the morning, he was getting ready to go hunting, fishing, golfing, etc. Finally one day I asked Denise (the wife) “when does he sleep?” Her answer – “oh, he sleeps at work, the guys take turns. It’s 3rd shift and the steelworkers union has their back, so no one can touch them.” Priceless. Of course, LTV Steel is long since bankrupt.

This is a sad time for America…… Can’t even catch a buzz without some busy body poking a camera in your face!

Andy Lamb said:
My favorite union experience – back in the mid 90’s when my kids were toddlers, I took them to a lady who watched kids in her home two days a week when my wife worked. Her husband worked 3rd shift, 11p – 7a at LTV Steel. Every time I’d drop the kids off in the morning, he was getting ready to go hunting, fishing, golfing, etc. Finally one day I asked Denise (the wife) “when does he sleep?” Her answer – “oh, he sleeps at work, the guys take turns. It’s 3rd shift and the steelworkers union has their back, so no one can touch them.” Priceless. Of course, LTV Steel is long since bankrupt.

I grew up near the steel mills of chicago/indiana
knew the same people
when they all got laid off they would not take new jobs because noone would pay them what they were used to making
sure had fun in the bar with them – always ready to throw down for a few shots

no-touchy-touchy said:
when they all got laid off they would not take new jobs because noone would pay them what they were used to making
sure had fun in the bar with them – always ready to throw down for a few shots

Naturally, they probably had a lot of practice from throwing them down when they were working. I work with some CNC machine shops locally for my job, I’m very familiar with three of them. Good shops, very well run, still profitable even in this terrible manufacturing climate. And, of course, none of them are union shops.

Andy Lamb said:
Naturally, they probably had a lot of practice from throwing them down when they were working. I work with some CNC machine shops locally for my job, I’m very familiar with three of them. Good shops, very well run, still profitable even in this terrible manufacturing climate. And, of course, none of them are union shops.

Yes I have a lot of experience with Unions. I installed computers for a nationwide company. Only 1 in Philadephia brought in the Teamsters (no driving, no trucks). Supervisors could not make them work hard. Although they already mad MUCH more than any location in the country the went on strike to get even more.
Guess who lost their jobs? Just plain stupid – at least know your market.

I believe they had their day, but became the same thing we have in govt. BLOATED people in charg, trying to keep their jobs.

I don’t condone getting stoned on your lunch break, BUT if you want to have a (singular) beer on your lunch break, I have no problem with it. If you get intoxicated and can’t do your job, or someone gets hurt, you lose your job and probably get sued. Accept the consequences of your choices.

Wow, Jon, getting played much by the right’s spin machine?

You are falling right into their meme.

They are workers.

Not “union workers.”

At least you had this:

“but stressed that the few people caught (some who have already been identified and suspended without pay) aren’t representative of an “outstanding” plant.”

And the humor was good, but think about the language you use and how you are really being used as a pawn in a much grander scheme by using phrases and memes the right counts on you to use to try and turn Americans against unions via the repeated usage of certain phrases that seep into the sub conscious of the weak minded.

Also, last time I checked, drinking and smoking are legal.

How is this any different than GOP executives having a three martini lunch in Houston at an oil company power biz lunch?

CLASS.

That’s it.

I was very embarrased

So how the heck do you go from UAW Chrysler plant workers to an entire smarmy paragraph about the producers at a local Fox station? What the hell, man?

OperaGuy said:
or someone gets hurt, you lose your job and probably get sued.

More likely the company gets sued–it has the deeper pockets.

Your union members ensuring that quality is job 1!!

Ah, Detroit…This is what you get when Democrats control a city for a half century, and the unions control the employers. The Democrats and unions work together to….destroy the whole community, devastate its economy, implode housing prices, push unemployment to ridiculous levels, spread crime and drugs throughout the community, and (the best part of all) get huge bailouts from us taxpayers so the Democrats can reward their corrupt union base.

If you let the Left have its way, the whole country will end up looking like Detroit.

@Shootfromthehip——Before we got R.F.I.D tags many NUMMI auto planet workers would go across the street during lunch and drink a lot more then a little bit,and come back to work a danger to me and them self’s.We had inebriated people getting hurt on sealer deck in top coat and body shop.Just so stupid go get drunk or high and go back to work. You see we had robots and sharp pointy things that could put your eye out or kill you. No drinking is not illegal it’s gust not aloud on the job and it’s unsafe.But dont worry for the workers in the story the UAW will save them especially if they are high seniority team members you see they pay more in Union duse then new highers.Hell man we had a sting operation at NUMMI involving the police,Union members were arrested for selling crank on the line,and you know what happened later the UAW(2244)stepped in to get there jobs back, that’s right 3or 4 of them did.We all knew they were guilty as hell .And for those who partied across the street they got back to work on time well mabe more like 50%of the time if at all. And one more thing going back to the FOX 2 news story above you asked”how is that any different then GOPexecutives having a three martini lunch in Houston at an oil company lunch” you see at the GOP lunch ,nobody get’s hurt or killed on the job.

At least it might be easier to track the money used for the auto bailouts than the Stimulus package.

And the auto bailout money is being used for domestic consumption! Why are anyone complaining?

DEFENDER-90 said:
UAW will save them especially if they are high seniority team members you see they pay more in Union duse then new highers.

You don’t know a damn thing about unions do you? Because you just showed it in that comment.

They have wine at breakfast and lunch in France. Big deal.

I work in a union shop with about 300 employees and more people are high on something than not. Especially payday

24 beers in a case . 24 hours in a day . Coincidence ?

Putting aside those smoking what certainly looks like pot, is the drinking really any different than employees of bailed out banks having wine or scotches with lunch? Wait I guess the difference is that the bank employees are rich enough to have the drinks with a nice poached salmon in a closed off restaurant while these guys have to squeeze it into a ten to fifteen minute lunch break? Is this indignation appropriate for guys who appear to be . . .shocker. . . having a beer during their break?

shootfromthehip said:
How is this any different than GOP executives having a three martini lunch in Houston at an oil company power biz lunch?

Dan Abrams said:
is the drinking really any different than employees of bailed out banks having wine or scotches with lunch?

shootfromthehip said:
CLASS.

HMMMMMM

Dan Abrams said:
Putting aside those smoking what certainly looks like pot, is the drinking really any different than employees of bailed out banks having wine or scotches with lunch? Wait I guess the difference is that the bank employees are rich enough to have the drinks with a nice poached salmon in a closed off restaurant while these guys have to squeeze it into a ten to fifteen minute lunch break? Is this indignation appropriate for guys who appear to be . . .shocker. . . having a beer during their break?

I’m allowed one drink at lunch. It can be either a beer or glass of wine. We head out as a group for lunch once a month and break that rule, sometimes our directors even come. It makes for a much nicer and laid back atmosphere around the office.

Now if I pulled out some live and was like “yo dogs lets fire this ma’ fucker up”, there would be a problem.

Dan Abrams said:
Putting aside those smoking what certainly looks like pot, is the drinking really any different than employees of bailed out banks having wine or scotches with lunch? Wait I guess the difference is that the bank employees are rich enough to have the drinks with a nice poached salmon in a closed off restaurant while these guys have to squeeze it into a ten to fifteen minute lunch break? Is this indignation appropriate for guys who appear to be . . .shocker. . . having a beer during their break?

Dan

First it is wrong to be drinking and smoking pot while working any job. Got that!

That behavior was prevalent up thru the mid 80’s. Most of us stopped then, obviously others did not.
It is not a union, non union issue…it is a people issue.

The difference between these guys and the bank employees is that these guys work on machinery, bank employees work with computers.

Bailed out banks…what a horrible costly mistake for our government to get in the middle of. We will pay for that decision for years. My question is what were the government officials drinking or smoking when they came up with bailing out the banks. Try putting your crack staff of reporter on solving this question. We would all be interested in finding out the answer.

“Accordingly, I shall not seek, and I will not accept, the nomination of my party for another term as your President.”
In a speech to be delivered by Barack O’Bama on or before March 31, 2012, Original quote from LBJ’s, 3/31/68 speech to the nation!

Dan Abrams said:
Putting aside those smoking what certainly looks like pot, is the drinking really any different than employees of bailed out banks having wine or scotches with lunch? Wait I guess the difference is that the bank employees are rich enough to have the drinks with a nice poached salmon in a closed off restaurant while these guys have to squeeze it into a ten to fifteen minute lunch break? Is this indignation appropriate for guys who appear to be . . .shocker. . . having a beer during their break?

Very true. We should never have given either Wall Street or Detroit taxpayer dollars. Also, drinking alcohol and smoking pot before operating heavy machinery is very dangerous to others around.

These guys scrambled like roaches when the cameras came out.

BatBoy said:
Try putting your crack staff of reporter on solving this question. We would all be interested in finding out the answer.

Don’t think so. Dan was formerly the General Manager for MSNBC. He’s busy going after their competition.

It is ignorant and lame for knee-jerk Leftists to excuse this behavior, but hardly a surprise.

if I was a member of the UAW – and worked to elect this President who then cost tens of thousands of union members their jobs by closing down their plants (for example Govt Motors historic Willow Run plant shut down this year and is shipping their jobs to Mexico and both auto plants in my home state of Delaware have been closed in the last year) id be drinking too. (and voting against any member of Congress that supported Obama)

hey right wing folks – on Unions you and the “creative class”obamacrats have much in common when it comes to dissing Union labor -

theres a reason that almost 100% of the AFL CIO endorsed hillary over Obama. (the exception being one prison guard union)

Obama has never really been a friend of labor …but he had a battlefield conme to Jesus in late 2008 didn’t he?

His promise to intro card check was total BS .

Since obama never had a FT job after he got out of law school – I think he has contempt for those foolish Americans who didnt scam their way into Harvard law school like he did and have the luck to have a bank VP grannie who paid his way through…

Dan Abrams said:
Putting aside those smoking what certainly looks like pot, is the drinking really any different than employees of bailed out banks having wine or scotches with lunch? Wait I guess the difference is that the bank employees are rich enough to have the drinks with a nice poached salmon in a closed off restaurant while these guys have to squeeze it into a ten to fifteen minute lunch break? Is this indignation appropriate for guys who appear to be . . .shocker. . . having a beer during their break?

Huge difference. The salaried bank employees are not on an assembly line where a drunken mistake can cost the lives of others or themselves.

And here’s the big one: The company and the union prohibit intoxication and any use of marihuana. ’nuff said.

@ The Real John T———I worked 17+years at New United Motor Manufacturing,Inc-Fremont California,I spent all that time in South and North paint shop’s, My last department was kppo93c South paint where did you work Idont remember seeing you there,and My uion was 2244 uaw.

hey i just read dan Abrams comment…

way to be fella. Your totally right.

“spot on” as the net nerds would say…

I was a p/t lunchtime bartender at a famous mega beer place when i was in grad school in DC and every day i had members of the press/lobbyists/hill rats come in for 4-5 beer lunches…

some of them – every single day (though we didnt serve salmon – we were more into buffalo burgers)

Dan Abrams said:
Putting aside those smoking what certainly looks like pot, is the drinking really any different than employees of bailed out banks having wine or scotches with lunch? Wait I guess the difference is that the bank employees are rich enough to have the drinks with a nice poached salmon in a closed off restaurant while these guys have to squeeze it into a ten to fifteen minute lunch break? Is this indignation appropriate for guys who appear to be . . .shocker. . . having a beer during their break?

Dan, I have to say this makes you come off a little out of touch.

1) I work with woodworking equipment and the #1 rule with such equipment is…. DON’T BE DRUNK OR HIGH! I know you have a law background and have probably never been in the labor area (or the flyover states but that’s a different topic). But come on, it’s common sense to not drink on the job when you work in something like an automotive plant… right?

2) People ARE outraged by the Wall Street types having their cocktails after being bailed out… Do you not WATCH the news you cover??? So why should we not equally outraged by these slackers getting drunk and high after us giving them a major second chance?

3) Wall Street types work behind a desk and do paperwork. Not a job that can cost life and limb if you are not paying attention. I had 2 fingers reattached due to inattention (he was not drunk or high) and these guys should NEVER work with equipment EVER again… period!

Dan Abrams said:
Putting aside those smoking what certainly looks like pot, is the drinking really any different than employees of bailed out banks having wine or scotches with lunch? Wait I guess the difference is that the bank employees are rich enough to have the drinks with a nice poached salmon in a closed off restaurant while these guys have to squeeze it into a ten to fifteen minute lunch break? Is this indignation appropriate for guys who appear to be . . .shocker. . . having a beer during their break?

Executives that go on power lunches are usually networking, hashing out new strategies or sealing deals. Sure, it’s a privileged life, but that makes it possible for the grunts to have a job.

“Executives that go on power lunches are usually networking, hashing out new strategies or sealing deals. Sure, it’s a privileged life, but that makes it possible for the grunts to have a job.”

dumbest comment ever

and from a obot “friend of the working man” of course….

YOUR (bailout) TAX DOLLARS AT WORK – under Obama & the DEMOCRATS!

Remember 11-02-10!

Dan Abrams said:
Putting aside those smoking what certainly looks like pot, is the drinking really any different than employees of bailed out banks having wine or scotches with lunch? Wait I guess the difference is that the bank employees are rich enough to have the drinks with a nice poached salmon in a closed off restaurant while these guys have to squeeze it into a ten to fifteen minute lunch break? Is this indignation appropriate for guys who appear to be . . .shocker. . . having a beer during their break?

Dan, you should have sent this missive to the President before he voted for TARP, and then went into “Bailout Fever” for the next two years!!!

@Dan Abrams————-So you think it’s ok to get your buzz on in an auto plant and it’s no different then a bank employee drinking on the job, I see.In an auto plant you have people derivng forklifts with pallets 8 feet high or they my be deriving a tug with 5 carts’s behind them,is it still ok to go drinking during lunch(Don’t Drink and Drive).And we had over head conveyors and floor level conveyors,and you had to be careful of pinch points on the line ,that’s were you can get between the conveyors and another pieces of equipment and remember your working on aline that is producing a car every 54 sec ,9.5-10 hours a day.Do you still think it’s a joke?Should Igo into detail on Automatics(ROBOTS)lock out tag out procedures.Step one you don’t go into a robot cell if you are buzzed,robot’s hurt when they hit you in the head,and Im not going into all of the tripping hazards

I’M WORNG WORKER SAFETY IS NOT IMPORTANT.

aline that is producing a car every 54 sec?

i thought it was more like every 3-4 minutes?

SLAVE DRIVER!

btw DEFENDER-90

only kidding…

@dcmediasux————–When I stated in 93 it was 62sec and later 58,56 then54.we kicked ass!

wow DEFENDER-90!

i grew up in a auto plant town and im very, very pissed that govt motors shut down both of them in the last year.

im a dem but – this is just one of the biggest reasons that i despise obama.

(there are no other jobs in my hometown – none. )

i mean christ – they shut down willow run in MI – even thoughs its numbers were sky high – with the announced intention to move the line to friggin Mexico!

Obama truly is no friend of working families. (except at election time of course)

This behavior has been going on for decades. And much worse. One of the many reasons American cars are so passe.

tatboy said:
1) I work with woodworking equipment and the #1 rule with such equipment is…. DON’T BE DRUNK OR HIGH! I know you have a law background and have probably never been in the labor area (or the flyover states but that’s a different topic). But come on, it’s common sense to not drink on the job when you work in something like an automotive plant… right?

I’m going to assume that though you may work with woodworking equipment, you’ don’t work for a small company, on-site, within the construction industry.

dcmediasux said:
i grew up in a auto plant town

dcmediasux said:
im from delaware

what auto plant?

shootfromthehip said:
Wow, Jon, getting played much by the right’s spin machine?

You are falling right into their meme.

They are workers.

Not “union workers.”

At least you had this:

“but stressed that the few people caught (some who have already been identified and suspended without pay) aren’t representative of an “outstanding” plant.”

And the humor was good, but think about the language you use and how you are really being used as a pawn in a much grander scheme by using phrases and memes the right counts on you to use to try and turn Americans against unions via the repeated usage of certain phrases that seep into the sub conscious of the weak minded.

Also, last time I checked, drinking and smoking are legal.

How is this any different than GOP executives having a three martini lunch in Houston at an oil company power biz lunch?

CLASS.

That’s it.

smoking pot isnt’t

Z_man723 said:
smoking pot isnt’t

edit: isn’t legal

@demediasux———I ageree you won’t get an argument from me. it was GM leaving that shut us down,you see we were a joint venture of TOYOTA and GM, once GM said thay were done with us they left almost immediately and TOYOTA gave us 7months notice and a retention bonus in my case 33,000+$.

Azarkhan said:
More likely the company gets sued–it has the deeper pockets.

Joint and several liability doesn’t always apply equally, for sure.

As for the “one beer” thing, I don’t want anyone messing with anything I trust my life with while they’re buzzed…but that’s just how backwards thinking I am.

Nachi said:
This behavior has been going on for decades. And much worse. One of the many reasons American cars are so passe.

I am shocked….SHOCKED….to find myself in agreement with you.

dcmediasux said:
im a dem but – this is just one of the biggest reasons that i despise obama.

Do we take that as “voter’s remorse?”