union relevance

it’s smoky in the city today, my eyes are drying in the socket, stinging with the particulate that fills the air. blinking repeatedly to moisturize, i feel tired, despite last night’s sound sleep. it has been a busy day so far, mostly for me as a shop stewart – as i had meetings with two of the members i am preparing cases for this morning, both who are experiencing profound personal crises brought on by life circumstance and illness.

i have multiple cases on the go these days, many of them sharing similar landscapes of personal disaster – a death in the family, a diagnosis of mental illness or physical disability, the loss of a home to fire, or a case of ongoing harassment in the workplace – events which mark people for life. rarely do i get a simple case of underpayment, or denied vacation time – because i am trusted, and i have won a case that was well-known in the department, those who have complex issues often contact me for advice and support.

with very little in the way of counseling or legal skills, i am expected to console, counsel (in terms of options), and advocate for the members of my local on an as-needed basis and with very little support. not only do i handle grievances and complaints, but am expected to argue before appeal boards and human rights tribunals as cases may arise. at times it is overwhelming, but at the same time it adds a challenge to my workplace which would not be there otherwise as i work to craft solid arguments and cases to take on behalf of the individuals i represent. obviously i get out of it what i put in – and each time i win or lose at the table, or on the picket line – there are new lessons and strengths to draw from later.

when i first got involved as a steward in my union, i had no idea how involved in people’s lives i could become, how much people would confide in me all their indignities if i showed any empathy. i did not realize how frustrated i could get about the injustice of worker’s compensation, disability insurance, bureaucratic indifference, and the lack of basic supports existing for those who wobble ever so slightly under the pressure of self-reliance and stress. for so many people who come to me, i can see in them plainly the lineage of working class backgrounds, of those who have been trained to assume a posture of fear in relation to bosses, of those who come from violence or abuse. for so many people, their workplace-related issue is just one more affront on a long list – the idea someone might stand up for them (even to lose), seems novel (if not ludicrous and not to be trusted in the first place).

as much as one of my meetings this morning left me with the additional stress of someone else’s world-weight – it also reminded me about what unions are and can be for people every day (not just when we are negotiating or picketing). for a long time, i was uninvolved in my union because i didn’t want it to interfere with my more radical activism – because i thought i had more important things to do. what i have learned in the last three years (as highlighted through so many moving experiences with people) is that bringing dignity and empowerment to people in these small ways is as integral to revolution as any other work we can do. it may not be nearly so sexy (or ego-gratifying) as fighting the cops in the street, or traveling from one activist hotspot to another – but it brings a measure of relief to those struggling just to get by in a world largely ambivalent to the real needs that people have.

the macleans poll this week asks about the relevance of labour unions (“crucial in today’s global market”, “necessary but ineffective”, “product of a bygone era”?). when i last checked, the overwhelming majority of respondents (80%) had checked “crucial in today’s global market” – which means either the labour community has organized well for this unscientific poll, or canadians really see the need for labour associations in their country. i would like to think it is the latter of the two, because from the people i talk to every day, i can see how crucial support and advocacy is in an increasingly frantic world.