Picket lines and ALDI

TwoShedsJackson

Went down to that there Aldi shop near the ILAC that does the fancy European grub t'other day - when I got there lo and behold there was a picket line, so I couldnt go in.

Daftly enough, five workers have been sacked for trying to join a union in this day and age. Management had big posters up saying all those sacked had been slackers etc. and that everyone else working there was as happy as a pig in $hite. Sounds well dodgy to me.

What I'd like to know tho is what people think of picket lines and such e.g. are there circumstances in which you would cross em and so on? Personally I wouldn't, the exception being if there was one on a hospital and you had to go in as a patient or to visit someone.

SantaHoe

Yep I'd support some picket lines...
like if workers in a supermarket feel thier job is that bad, then their must be some major cràp going on, getting grief from managers and low pay etc...
But for something like that Taxi-driver dispute a few months back where they blocked off a busy dublin city street, I'd tell them where to go, and climb over the bloody cars.
If you're just in town for a bit of shopping it's fine, but what if you were on your way to work?, or you had to collect your kid from school?
Let them protest, and fair play to them, but just don't screw with people who don't have anything to do with (or give a cràp about) your cause.

Shiminay

I don't have a problem with an official picket and probably wouldn't cross it (unless I *really* had to get through). I'm not a member of any union, but I don't think that matters - employees are entitled to fair wages and conditions etc.

What really annoys me is these fúckwit train drivers on a completely un-official strike. If I ever met one of them, I'd kick him so hard in the balls he'd never walk again!

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All the best,

Dav
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Manach

Just saying I agree with Kharn. No problem with offical Union strikes, but this seems to be internal Union politics by the ILDA. I was a regular commutor till the rail strike. Even with the extra buses with laid on by CIE still difficult to get to work. Still it was amusing seeing the Socialist Workers handing out leftlets to commutors explaning why they should support the train strike.

WhiteWashMan

having been a shop steward for siptu for my crimes a few years back i can honestly say i will never join or work in a union place again. now, thats not to say i wouldnt cross a picket line. on principle i wouldnt.
but i find it very dod*** when someone ups about being sacked for joining a union. lets face it, if they had to join a union when no-one else did means that they were probably up sh1ts creek anyway.
anyway, there are very few instances in which i would actively cross a picket line.
as castor said, in a medical emergency or a coffee emergency.
i did cross the bewleys one a few years ago, but that was coz there was a tosser i knew working there and he made a comment to me so i walked by him and had a lovely cup of coffee and a smoke

Shinji

Depends on the circumstance, really.

If I support the reason for picketing, I won't cross. But then again, given how far up their own asses a lot of trade unions are, my support for a lot of their causes is waning. The Aldi one is dodgy as hell; it looks to me like a pile of slackers were fired and are now bl33ting like little lambs. And as for the taxi drivers, and the train drivers... Bah, don't get me started.

Ja,
Rob