One More Reason That Unions Are Inherently Problematic
Unless you are a pack animal and prefer a mob mentality to individual thought processes, or you have no marketable skills or ambition for self-improvement, or you are an idiot, or you are lazy, or you are any combination thereof, you should just say “no” to being in a labor union. When you enter into a union, willingly or otherwise, you forfeit your right to bargain as an individual. Have a particular knack that makes you more efficient than some of your coworkers and think you deserve a raise? Tough. Take it up with your union representative and maybe he’ll fight to get EVERYONE a raise whether EVERYONE deserves it or not.
The real kicker today though is the case of Pennsylvania bus driver David Justka. Who would have thought there was a union for bus drivers? But I digress, the Erie Metropolitan Transit Authority has apparently fired Mr. Justka for the second time after his third on-the-job accident, all in the span of three years. Who would have thought driving a bus were that difficult? But I digress (again), the Amalgamated Transit Union has filed a grievance against the EMTA in defense of Mr. Justka. Let me give you some background on Mr. Justka’s accidents: (1) August 2005, struck and killed bicyclist and surgeon who’s widow settled a lawsuit against the EMTA for $500,000. Mr. Justka was reinstated in October 2006; (2) “recently” (no date was given) struck a 16-year old pedestrian, leaving her with minor injuries. According to GoErie.com, “video from the bus showed it was across the white line marking the road’s edge”; (3) no information on the third was found at GoErie.com but is it really necessary after the first accident mentioned?
At the time of the first accident Mr. Justka had “four crashes and numerous traffic violations” which I assume was his personal driving record. You may be wondering just what the Union’s defense would be in saving Mr. Justka’s position as a bus driver. I know I am. The company had a disciplinary policy at the time which required that employee records be “wiped clean every year”! I suppose that is going to be the argument presented by the Amalgamated Transit Union when Mr. Justka pleads not guilty in a summary trial on November 20. From what I read, I surmise that one side will argue that a driving record is not all that relevant to one’s position as a bus driver while the other side will argue just the opposite.
In regards to the nonsensical policy of wiping a record clean every year Richard Perhacs, a lawyer for EMTA, is quoted as saying, “We’d have a driver on the road that we think shouldn’t be there, but we would have likely no alternative but to comply with it. Those are the rules.”
And that is just one more reason that unions are inherently problematic. Clearly David Justka is a liability to everyone travelling the same streets when he is on duty (or off if those other four accidents were not on-the-job). Whether they are driving, walking, or bicycling makes no difference. They are all at risk as long as David Justka is on the EMTA payroll—unless he’s cleaning buses instead of driving them.
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