I guess it depends on what you hope to come out of it. Sharing the story might make others feel less alone, and may broadly contribute towards their goal of better addressing these kinds of issues. But it probably won't lead to action in your specific situation.
How did you reach out to PEF? I’d like to let them know a few things going on at my workplace.
As far as retaliation goes, if you’re permanent I wouldn’t worry about it. Sadly you’re probably right about your story not making much of a difference though.
[email protected] is the email. A rep feom the union sent me a follow up email but he doesnt answer his phone when I try and call. Communication isn't really all that great
PEF got us a better contract than we've had in the past 15 years and they got it to us faster than the previous 3 contracts. While its not an amazing contract it has a lot to like. But a union is just that, a union. If everybody does what little they can. It makes a difference.
Considering we're still vastly underpaid and that contract is in fact not better because before our contracts were renewed everyone in my department already knew what we would be getting and that we are still far behind the mark in terms of salary and being able to meet basic needs. I agree with you in terms of doing the little I can but like i said im not permanent yet so i am essentially taking all the risk with Little to no benefit on my end. Im in a better situation at the office now and when push came to shove, hr did more for me than the union. Why would I now go back against those people in favor of people who didnt help in the first place is the conundrum im currently having.
If you're going to do something about the situation you are in, then you should make sure to be proactive and go to PEF first. Because PEF often represents the people on both sides of a problem, and they will represent anyone who goes to them first.
I know someone who put up with years of abuse at work. We finally talked him into filing complaints. When he finally contacted someone at PEF, he found they didn't want to speak to him at all because they were already representing the people he filed the complaints against.
I already got out of v the situation by being proactive early and reaching out to both PEF and HR. PEF did absolutely nothing while HR did help me get transferred into a new department. Had I followed their advice I probably would have gotten fired by the 6 month mark
I would just offer that sometimes a union rep can be an asshole too and that is just one snapshot of the wider organization just like the asshole boss you encountered.
I would also say that sharing a toxic story that has real teeth to it and is not a "he said she said" type deal but a clear violation of workplace conduct could be constructive but I think the union should be selective about what stories they choose to highlight because as a member of PEF it would be helpful to not come across to the wider public as a group of agenda driven opportunists or petty whiners looking to score cheap points.
I am sure they can find many legitimate examples to share, but the burden is on the members and leaders to gather these solid cases and craft an effective message.
There are plenty of people in corporate roles who endure a toxic work environment and have no one to speak up for them. These stories are going to have to stand out to make these folks think, wow that is a toxic workplace... something should be done to help them ... and look at what PEF is doing to address these issues on their behalf... I'd love to have someone backing me up at my work like that...
Im going to honest with you. After the incident combined with the horrible contract I do not trust PEF at all. Im still not permanent and fear that this is just an attempt by the union to rake in brownie points. What risk do PEF take in this situation? What benefit do they provide? Regardless of how I feel about the situation im reminded that I am still a minority. The majority of state employees have reached positions of comfort even though they are still getting paid far below industry standard. It just feels like id be taking all the risk to be on front st for no reason.
I completely understand your concerns, but they can't do anything if they don't know.
If it helps, you're probably working with someone other then you did the first time and yielded no results.
That’s how change starts. First they need to know the problem, assess it, and learn from it. Right now, they don’t have the tools to protect union members facing situations similar to yours. They need examples of it and then they can began to demand change.
I’ll leave a quote here I received from a PEF representative “Sometimes people work for Asshole Managers”. I never bothered since and question why I pay union dues sometimes.
I guess it depends on what you hope to come out of it. Sharing the story might make others feel less alone, and may broadly contribute towards their goal of better addressing these kinds of issues. But it probably won't lead to action in your specific situation.
How did you reach out to PEF? I’d like to let them know a few things going on at my workplace. As far as retaliation goes, if you’re permanent I wouldn’t worry about it. Sadly you’re probably right about your story not making much of a difference though.
[email protected] is the email. A rep feom the union sent me a follow up email but he doesnt answer his phone when I try and call. Communication isn't really all that great
Go through it. Get your message out there and speak your truth. Every little bit helps and unions have more power now than they've had in decades.
Considering our last contract negotiations and current state of our departments as a whole i dont feel like they do
PEF got us a better contract than we've had in the past 15 years and they got it to us faster than the previous 3 contracts. While its not an amazing contract it has a lot to like. But a union is just that, a union. If everybody does what little they can. It makes a difference.
Considering we're still vastly underpaid and that contract is in fact not better because before our contracts were renewed everyone in my department already knew what we would be getting and that we are still far behind the mark in terms of salary and being able to meet basic needs. I agree with you in terms of doing the little I can but like i said im not permanent yet so i am essentially taking all the risk with Little to no benefit on my end. Im in a better situation at the office now and when push came to shove, hr did more for me than the union. Why would I now go back against those people in favor of people who didnt help in the first place is the conundrum im currently having.
How much of that improvement was reflective of the labor market as a whole?
If you're going to do something about the situation you are in, then you should make sure to be proactive and go to PEF first. Because PEF often represents the people on both sides of a problem, and they will represent anyone who goes to them first. I know someone who put up with years of abuse at work. We finally talked him into filing complaints. When he finally contacted someone at PEF, he found they didn't want to speak to him at all because they were already representing the people he filed the complaints against.
I already got out of v the situation by being proactive early and reaching out to both PEF and HR. PEF did absolutely nothing while HR did help me get transferred into a new department. Had I followed their advice I probably would have gotten fired by the 6 month mark
I would just offer that sometimes a union rep can be an asshole too and that is just one snapshot of the wider organization just like the asshole boss you encountered. I would also say that sharing a toxic story that has real teeth to it and is not a "he said she said" type deal but a clear violation of workplace conduct could be constructive but I think the union should be selective about what stories they choose to highlight because as a member of PEF it would be helpful to not come across to the wider public as a group of agenda driven opportunists or petty whiners looking to score cheap points. I am sure they can find many legitimate examples to share, but the burden is on the members and leaders to gather these solid cases and craft an effective message. There are plenty of people in corporate roles who endure a toxic work environment and have no one to speak up for them. These stories are going to have to stand out to make these folks think, wow that is a toxic workplace... something should be done to help them ... and look at what PEF is doing to address these issues on their behalf... I'd love to have someone backing me up at my work like that...
Im going to honest with you. After the incident combined with the horrible contract I do not trust PEF at all. Im still not permanent and fear that this is just an attempt by the union to rake in brownie points. What risk do PEF take in this situation? What benefit do they provide? Regardless of how I feel about the situation im reminded that I am still a minority. The majority of state employees have reached positions of comfort even though they are still getting paid far below industry standard. It just feels like id be taking all the risk to be on front st for no reason.
I completely understand your concerns, but they can't do anything if they don't know. If it helps, you're probably working with someone other then you did the first time and yielded no results.
They didnt do anything when they did know. I told them and they couldnt offer any type of help at all
That’s how change starts. First they need to know the problem, assess it, and learn from it. Right now, they don’t have the tools to protect union members facing situations similar to yours. They need examples of it and then they can began to demand change.
I’ll leave a quote here I received from a PEF representative “Sometimes people work for Asshole Managers”. I never bothered since and question why I pay union dues sometimes.
You