When one union strikes, do other unions provide support or solidarity?

[NAO]

There is an imminent strike with grocery workers in Arizona. Fry's and Safeway are the companies. They have threatened a two-way lockout - if anybody from either company decides to strike, both chains will pre-emptively lock out all union workers from both stores.

I fear for these workers. There is a massive reserve army of labor right now because of high unemployment. Public sentiment is "you should just be glad you HAVE a job". The stores have already taken out full-page ads to hire +5000 temporary workers.

It seems like the big employers hold all the cards, and nowadays with "union-busting consultants" and high unemployment, not even unions are an antidote to the power of wealthy private companies to use economic coersion to pay people less and less while reaping higher and higher profits.

[Hello_Kitty]

1. I'm in AZ and I'm worried too.

We already have low wages in this state. This will just drive them down further.

[Juche]

2. I think Taft-Hartley banned that practice

I could be wrong, I'm reading up on it and I don't see a ban on sister strikes. But I thought it was banned already.

Either way, unions are more of a long term force. They slowly force corporations to treat people more fairly. And over time if enough unions raise standards of livings, wages and worker treatments then all the non-unionized employers will be forced to offer comparable increases in wages and standards of livings just to keep the unions out. It actually is a case of a rising tide lifting all boats since the non-union workers in different areas also see their wages and treatment improve because management fears a union will move in if they do not.

With EFCA about 1 million people would join unions each year for 10 years. By the end of it over 20% of the workforce would be unionized (opposed to about 12% today).

Do you think Frys and Safeway can train all 5000+ temp workers fast enough to get the stores up and running at high capacity? Even if they find people with previous experience in customer service and grocery stores it will still require them to adapt to the new store and setting.

It is going to take decades to reverse the damage done by Reaganomics. But strong unions are a big part of it.

[Spike89]

3. Exactly, Unions are long term

In the short term, yes, employers can hurt a union and its members, even break it (and the lives of the members). In the long term, busting unions works to change the perception from "who needs 'em?" to "what would we do without 'em". Sadly, there is a huge anti-union PR apparatus, so I'm afraid that we may lose a lot before the tide turns.

[Q3JR4]

4. Maybe...

they should all strike....

At the same time.

Q3JR4.

[Brickbat]

5. Taft-Hartley bans secondary strikes.

However, other unions can hold food drives, fundraisers for the strike fund, and so on. Also, other unions can choose to honor picket lines or not.