Comment: One way for workers to make things better – is to build and protect a union

By Steven Tifft / For The Chronicle

There are many things we may disagree about. That’s healthy. This is freedom of expression.

I think most of us can agree that if you work hard at your job and play by the rules, you should be able to make a decent living and take care of your family. Unfortunately, in many places, including parts of Southwest Washington, this is more of a wish than a reality.

For me the question is: What can you do about it? How can you change the system so that it doesn’t get so out of hand?

I want to focus on the workers in our economy. We are the ones who drive trucks, teach school children, and work in retail stores, grocery stores, hospitality, healthcare, technology, and many other industries.

We make America work.

In general, there is one thing that could make a difference for almost all of us, and that is forming a union. And if we already have a union, our union will be strengthened.

Personally, I work in Environmental Services at Providence Centralia Hospital. Years ago, the workers who came before us decided to vote to form a union in our workplace. And then workers invest time and effort to strengthen our union. I am a steward of my work, helping to train colleagues and enforce our contract.

Recently, I and four others represented our colleagues as we sat down in front of our employer and negotiated the actual terms of our employment: how much we are paid, what our working conditions are, what health benefits we receive, along with bits of company policy, what we like, how for example, bereavement leave so that it cannot be changed at the whim of the company, and what the process is for resolving disagreements and how to ensure we are treated fairly and not unfairly dismissed.

This new treaty was approved almost unanimously.

The contract we negotiate and everyone gets to vote on, while far from perfect, allows us to have a far better place to work than without these protections and benefits. And every few years we start renegotiating the contract. It is also legally binding, meaning we can force the employer to follow the rules, rather than in most cases where the boss simply changes the rules whenever he wants or only applies them when he wants to Employees he likes or dislikes.

I agree that a union will not solve all your problems and that not all unions are the same, but it is also a fact that employees who have a union in the workplace and make their union active and stand together with their colleagues do far better It is the turn of workers in the same sectors who do not belong to a union.

So if you’re one of the tens of millions of workers across the country who don’t belong to a union but think you might want one, now is a good time to act.

Worker laws and protections are under attack. The best way to protect yourself at work is to organize for a union today, or if you already have a union at work, get more involved and strengthen it. I’m not saying it’s all easy, but it’s only going to get harder in the next few years.

Since I work in Centralia, it’s good to look back at the history of unions in Lewis County, which has long been predominantly union. The rights we enjoy were fought for, and in some cases even died, by our grandparents’ generation. They cared about improving their wages, working conditions, meal and rest breaks, and our eight-hour days.

So why not now? Ultimately, if there is a majority of people in a workplace who want a union, then they should have one. And forming a union is just the first step. Then negotiate your contract. Both patience and pressure will be required to a great extent to overcome most employers’ resistance to union organizing efforts. But what true value in our lives comes easily or quickly?

There are many unions you can call. My union is UFCW 3000 – the state’s largest local union with over 50,000 workers in healthcare, grocery, retail, food processing, cannabis and more. And there are so many other unions.

The difference could be getting a safer job with better pay and benefits – a more secure future.

Steven Tifft is a union health worker at Providence Centralia Hospital and lives in Centralia. He is a works councilor and member of his union’s negotiating team. He is a member of UFCW 3000. For more information, visit www.UFCW3000.org.