I'm fairly certain the school can afford it, though.

I don't see Mac taking anywhere near as big of a hit from this strike and pay-scale/benefits fight as the hit it could take if the school continues being as much a pile of garbage as it has been for the past month or two (some would argue longer).

Im still not fully understanding the reason for the strike.. anyone willing to clarify, in really to the point terms?

Originally Posted by malakovski

Im still not fully understanding the reason for the strike.. anyone willing to clarify, in really to the point terms?

Not only that but can someone gimme an estimate on when this thing will be over?

Originally Posted by malakovski

Im still not fully understanding the reason for the strike.. anyone willing to clarify, in really to the point terms?

Hospitality workers are currently paid more than they are worth, and receive guaranteed job security which Mac cannot afford to maintain. Mac wants this to stop.

Vs.

Union wants their workers to keep making more than they are worth, and to keep the guaranteed job security which prevents workers from being fired.

Originally Posted by kinetochore

Hospitality workers are currently paid more than they are worth, and receive guaranteed job security which Mac cannot afford to maintain. Mac wants this to stop.

Vs.

Union wants their workers to keep making more than they are worth, and to keep the guaranteed job security which prevents workers from being fired.

How much do they make?

Originally Posted by kinetochore

Hospitality workers are currently paid more than they are worth, and receive guaranteed job security which Mac cannot afford to maintain. Mac wants this to stop.

Vs.

Union wants their workers to keep making more than they are worth, and to keep the guaranteed job security which prevents workers from being fired.

Translation for those of us who aren't drinking McMaster's laced Koolaid:

Hospitality workers are currently paid a living wage and can't be fired without a good reason and due process. Their labour ensures Hospitality and Food Services is profitable to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars per year which is used to fund other things in the University. The Union wants this reasonable arrangement to continue.

Vs.

The McMaster administration has blown a huge hole in its budget by increasing by 10x the number of administration officials paid over $100,000 in the last 8 years and that same group of people has seen an average wage increase of 80% in those same 8 years. They need to find money to continue that gravy train (including having the University pay for their spouses travel) and they aim to find the money by taking it from Hospitality and Food Services workers.

Originally Posted by dsahota

Translation for those of us who aren't drinking McMaster's laced Koolaid:

Hospitality workers are currently paid a living wage and can't be fired without a good reason and due process. Their labour ensures Hospitality and Food Services is profitable to the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars per year which is used to fund other things in the University. The Union wants this reasonable arrangement to continue.

Vs.

The McMaster administration has blown a huge hole in its budget by increasing by 10x the number of administration officials paid over $100,000 in the last 8 years and that same group of people has seen an average wage increase of 80% in those same 8 years. They need to find money to continue that gravy train (including having the University pay for their spouses travel) and they aim to find the money by taking it from Hospitality and Food Services workers.

1. If the wage these workers deserve is not a living wage, they should have opted for a more lucrative career than unskilled labour. Restaurant busboys and department store cashiers also do not make living wages, nor do they deserve to.
2. Highly skilled labourers (such as administrators, etc) make a lot more money than do workers with no skill at all (i.e. hospitality workers). They earn this money by doing work which few others can. Not sure why you brought this up.
3. The misuse of expense accounts has nothing to do with the wage that workers deserve. Yes, we can and should rant about it, but its not relevant to the strike.

Originally Posted by kinetochore

1. If the wage these workers deserve is not a living wage, they should have opted for a more lucrative career than unskilled labour. Restaurant busboys and department store cashiers also do not make living wages, nor do they deserve to.
2. Highly skilled labourers (such as administrators, etc) make a lot more money than do workers with no skill at all (i.e. hospitality workers). They earn this money by doing work which few others can. Not sure why you brought this up.
3. The misuse of expense accounts has nothing to do with the wage that workers deserve. Yes, we can and should rant about it, but its not relevant to the strike.

1. Easy to say when you've never had to struggle with anything other than whether to get the V-neck or classic look graphic tee from Abercrombie.

2. LOL HAVE YOU EVER EVEN SET FOOT IN/READ ANYTHING ABOUT THE CORPORATE/MANAGERIAL/PROFESSIONAL WORLD? THE MOST HILARIOUSLY IGNORANT THING I'VE HEARD IN A LONG TIME. NO FURTHER COMMENT.

3. If someone was stuffing $13,000 in 100 dollar bills into their wife's crevices as part of foreplay, and then insisting that you take pay cuts... you'd be thinking differently.

HURRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

Originally Posted by Kendoon

1. Easy to say when you've never had to struggle with anything other than whether to get the V-neck or classic look graphic tee from Abercrombie.

2. LOL HAVE YOU EVER EVEN SET FOOT IN/READ ANYTHING ABOUT THE CORPORATE/MANAGERIAL/PROFESSIONAL WORLD? THE MOST HILARIOUSLY IGNORANT THING I'VE HEARD IN A LONG TIME. NO FURTHER COMMENT.

3. If someone was stuffing $13,000 in 100 dollar bills into their wife's crevices as part of foreplay, and then insisting that you take pay cuts... you'd be thinking differently.

HURRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

1. I agree with you. I'd probably make less money than I'd like if I was an unskilled labourer. Which is why I will not become an unskilled labourer.

2. /troll

3. Your logic is that Administrator A wastes money (by misusing expense accounts), thus labourer B should also be allowed to waste money (by earning more than he deserves). The more productive solution is to eliminate all misuse of university money.

In general, arguments that demand I put myself in the shoes of the labourers are invalid. If I was a hospitality worker, I would of course want more money. Who wouldn't want more money than they are worth, given the opportunity?

I do like your analogies though, very entertaining

Okay, never mind the wage crap, what about the job out-sourcing?

Originally Posted by kinetochore

I do like your analogies though, very entertaining

I'm just here for the recognition, the lulz, and despite you still being a moron and my hating all the parties involved in anything that has to do with McMaster, HSR, Hamilton, money, presidents and whatnot at the moment, I really.. REALLY.. don't care.

I might be willing to take the University's side if there wasn't a clear pattern of the same bullshit from them.

Every time its them trying to take away benefits etc from workers who serve their students aka paying customers.

Its unfair to offer people a certain level of pay, benefits and job security and then try and take that away and expect them to be happy. If you didn't want to pay them X amount or give them job security you shouldn't have done so in the first place and allowed people to sign up for the job who didn't require such benefits.

Plus as has been pointed out its difficult to take the University's side on such financial issues when you read all about their ridiculous expenditures and know how much higher ups (some who don't even work for Mac anymore) are raking in.

As one of the University's paying customers I'd much prefer my money go towards paying people who work for me and actually help me than have it go towards exorbitant salaries and ridiculous expenses for execs who are screwing the students left, right and centre in an attempt to get even more money.

Honestly, I don't give a shit about either of them.
Just stop striking so I don't have to walk a further distance, I'm fat.

Originally Posted by sew12

I might be willing to take the University's side if there wasn't a clear pattern of the same bullshit from them.

Every time its them trying to take away benefits etc from workers who serve their students aka paying customers.

Its unfair to offer people a certain level of pay, benefits and job security and then try and take that away and expect them to be happy. If you didn't want to pay them X amount or give them job security you shouldn't have done so in the first place and allowed people to sign up for the job who didn't require such benefits.

Plus as has been pointed out its difficult to take the University's side on such financial issues when you read all about their ridiculous expenditures and know how much higher ups (some who don't even work for Mac anymore) are raking in.

As one of the University's paying customers I'd much prefer my money go towards paying people who work for me and actually help me than have it go towards exorbitant salaries and ridiculous expenses for execs who are screwing the students left, right and centre in an attempt to get even more money.

I hear you, but as always with anyone in a position of power screwing over those below them, the response to change is likely;