You know, when my company announced a $0.40 an hour raise for all hourly associates in February this year, I almost stood up and said, "That is not enough". The reason I didn't is because the majority of the people I work with would be too afraid to lose their job by standing up with me. Not that I need the support of everyone to stick up for myself, but as you know, there is strength in numbers. Further more, I know it wouldn't do any good, and just draw negative attention to myself. My warehouse has a strict no union stance, and talking about one or supporting collective action will get you fired. I'm literally in a position where I am just doing what I can to keep food on the table.
My warehouse has raised our pay anywhere from $0.25 to $0.40 ever year since it has opened. I make $19.75 with an hour with that raise, so they have basically been sticking to the reported CPI 2% rate of inflation when it comes to the COLA pay increases. The people in charge of the warehouse like the General Manager and his Assistant General Manager are making 75k a year minimum. I'm not sure but I've also heard they could be 100k+. Anyway, if they only got a 2% raise that still gives them $2000 more dollars a year, and $1000 more than most of the rest of us. And for what.. typical hierarchy bullshit, they sit around in offices all day having fucking meetings while the rest of us slave away unloading and loading trailers @ 400+ cases(boxes) an HOUR by hand.
We've also been told that if we do not make the expected productivity levels this year, we might become a 'liability' to the company. Thing is they don't do layoffs. In an extreme situation like that they would probably cut an entire shift, with every person on that shift being treated as "displaced". That gives the displaced associate first dibs on any job postings for the warehouse, but they sit @ home without pay, (I think unemployment will pay) until they take a position.
Anyway, I wouldn't even put up with it if my life and my family's didn't depend on it. I will say that I have gotten a good enough position there at the warehouse that I can be assured all of my hours in a week and all of the days of the year as long as my shift stays 'profitable' and doesn't get cut completely. I also do not have to slave away @ ridiculous levels of productivity. I did that for 4.5 years to get where I am now. I would have stayed in school, payed for by the Army, if only the fucking government hadn't taken 2+ years to get me my money correctly. I'm not even making that up.. I had to get a Congressman involved to get my GI Bill pay. It took almost 2 years to fix; and in the mean time I had to choose between possibly losing my 'decently paying' job during the crash of 2008, staying in school, and starving, or drop out with a 3.74 GPA, go back to work full time, secure my job in this fucking economy, and give up.
Fuck this just made me mad.
WHY ARE BANKERS CRYING ABOUT PAY. FUCKING STEAL IT, AND STFU!
