Happy Labor Day, Darlings!
Labor Day Weekend is always one of my favorite holidays: Nominally, the end of summer, time to readust mentally for fall, and get the fall china out. Start thinking about holiday parties and menus, and what sort of outfit Kelly and Candy should change to - that sort of thing.
But it's also important to recognize labor: That's you and me, darlings!!!! Our society is always so eager to go slap a wreath on the tomb of a dead soldier - mostly because dead soldiers can't talk and tell us what they think about what happened to them, and whether or not it was worth it - but how many of us remember the labor leaders and the countless workers who sacrificed so that we can have this holiday today?
Not only this holiday, of course, but other fun things. Such as the forty hour work week, the two day weekend (Darlings, did you know it used to be common to work M-F, and then half of Saturday? Can you imagine?), health and safety regulations, hospitalization insurance, whistleblower protections - my, I could go on and on!
Chez Vel-DuRay, being a have of good taste, is of course a pro-union household. Grandfather Miller was an electrical lineman. Prior to the union, you could be fired or laid off for whatever reason, and there were no safety regulations. The fatality rates among linemen were appalling, and he had to cut a few of his buddies down off the pole and let them fall when they were electrocuted. That was the only recourse they had. The union gave him a steady income, and helped him provide for his family of twelve. (They lived in Nebraska and this was before TV - what else were they supposed to do with their evenings?)
Mother Vel-DuRay was a "Rosie the Riveter" then went to work for the telephone company. She participated in the big strike of 1947 that gave the workers a five day work week and a decent raise.
The Colonel, of course, was a union man for years until taking this management job. But he still pays his dues, just to keep a hand in.
And little me? I am a proud member of local 17 of the IFPTE. (Don't ask me what that stands for, I can never remember. I just know that they got me a 12% raise with this latest contract, so I'm very pleased.)
(On a personal note, let me just add that - contrary to popular beliefs, mine included - I have worked harder at The Major Concern than any other job I have had. Certainly much harder than my job at That Other Company. I love my job - it's just a lot more work - and a lot more technical - than I was expecting) So the next time some vulgarian snarls something unpleasant about government and/or union workers, think of little me, won't you?)
Whether or not you belong to a union, we all have unions to thank for our working conditions, because a lot of places improved their wages and benefits because they wanted to keep the unions out. In the end, the result was a better working environment.
So on this Labor Day, as you fuss with your deviled eggs and quaff your beers, pause for a moment and think about the people - normal, everyday people like you and me - who worked so that our work wouldn't be as dreary as their work.
Happy Labor Day, everyone!
But it's also important to recognize labor: That's you and me, darlings!!!! Our society is always so eager to go slap a wreath on the tomb of a dead soldier - mostly because dead soldiers can't talk and tell us what they think about what happened to them, and whether or not it was worth it - but how many of us remember the labor leaders and the countless workers who sacrificed so that we can have this holiday today?
Not only this holiday, of course, but other fun things. Such as the forty hour work week, the two day weekend (Darlings, did you know it used to be common to work M-F, and then half of Saturday? Can you imagine?), health and safety regulations, hospitalization insurance, whistleblower protections - my, I could go on and on!
Chez Vel-DuRay, being a have of good taste, is of course a pro-union household. Grandfather Miller was an electrical lineman. Prior to the union, you could be fired or laid off for whatever reason, and there were no safety regulations. The fatality rates among linemen were appalling, and he had to cut a few of his buddies down off the pole and let them fall when they were electrocuted. That was the only recourse they had. The union gave him a steady income, and helped him provide for his family of twelve. (They lived in Nebraska and this was before TV - what else were they supposed to do with their evenings?)
Mother Vel-DuRay was a "Rosie the Riveter" then went to work for the telephone company. She participated in the big strike of 1947 that gave the workers a five day work week and a decent raise.
The Colonel, of course, was a union man for years until taking this management job. But he still pays his dues, just to keep a hand in.
And little me? I am a proud member of local 17 of the IFPTE. (Don't ask me what that stands for, I can never remember. I just know that they got me a 12% raise with this latest contract, so I'm very pleased.)
(On a personal note, let me just add that - contrary to popular beliefs, mine included - I have worked harder at The Major Concern than any other job I have had. Certainly much harder than my job at That Other Company. I love my job - it's just a lot more work - and a lot more technical - than I was expecting) So the next time some vulgarian snarls something unpleasant about government and/or union workers, think of little me, won't you?)
Whether or not you belong to a union, we all have unions to thank for our working conditions, because a lot of places improved their wages and benefits because they wanted to keep the unions out. In the end, the result was a better working environment.
So on this Labor Day, as you fuss with your deviled eggs and quaff your beers, pause for a moment and think about the people - normal, everyday people like you and me - who worked so that our work wouldn't be as dreary as their work.
Happy Labor Day, everyone!
posted by Catalina Vel-DuRay @ Monday, September 01, 2008
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