The Worker Thread

[Vrede too]

Hilarious And Relatable Tweets About Work Emails

Examples:


Especially funny since it's neither, if Graham wants to sound professional.
for fuck's sake


Yep, the Nate Silver.



Ones y'all like? There are a bunch of good ones.

[GoCubsGo]

Ones y'all like? There are a bunch of good ones.

European out-of-offices: “I’m away camping for the summer. Email again in September”

American out-of-offices: “I have left the office for two hours to undergo kidney surgery but you can reach me on my cell anytime”

[Vrede too]

Ones y'all like? There are a bunch of good ones.

European out-of-offices: “I’m away camping for the summer. Email again in September”

American out-of-offices: “I have left the office for two hours to undergo kidney surgery but you can reach me on my cell anytime”

Spot on, and sad. American working conditions have been regressing towards 19th Century standards since Reagan. For example:

An $80 Billion Industry Looks for Child Workers. It Keeps Missing Them.

[O Really]

In the spirit of Devil's advocate, one does wonder if those teen workers would have a better life if we just let them work or if we sent them off to the streets.

And isn't it amazing that if he's working in a factory he's a "child" but if he shoots somebody he miraculously becomes an "adult"

[Vrede too]

In the spirit of Devil's advocate, one does wonder if those teen workers would have a better life if we just let them work or if we sent them off to the streets.

That's what deplorable bosses have always said about child labor laws. IMO zero tolerance with dangerous industrial jobs, maybe some slack with other teen employment. If more adults are making a living wage then more kids can be kids.

Anyhow, this is not about gov't enforcement. Rather, it's about private certification in response to public demand. You're never going to convince the masses that this child labor is okay.

And isn't it amazing that if he's working in a factory he's a "child" but if he shoots somebody he miraculously becomes an "adult"

Good point.

[O Really]

In the spirit of Devil's advocate, one does wonder if those teen workers would have a better life if we just let them work or if we sent them off to the streets.

That's what deplorable bosses have always said about child labor laws. IMO zero tolerance with dangerous industrial jobs, maybe some slack with other teen employment. If more adults are making a living wage then more kids can be kids.

Anyhow, this is not about gov't enforcement. Rather, it's about private certification in response to public demand. You're never going to convince the masses that this child labor is okay.

And isn't it amazing that if he's working in a factory he's a "child" but if he shoots somebody he miraculously becomes an "adult"

Good point.

Here's somebody the same age as the guys working in the factory.


Here's another


All's I'm saying, still advocating for the Devil, is that it may be better to determine what is best for the kids based on their own real alternatives, not on what would be a better long-term solution. You wouldn't even have to change labor laws, just expand the provisions for documenting and approving exceptions.

[Vrede too]

Here's somebody the same age as the guys working in the factory.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QZdGk2V8FRw

Here's another
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CMWMbBK9Txo

All's I'm saying, still advocating for the Devil, is that it may be better to determine what is best for the kids based on their own real alternatives, not on what would be a better long-term solution. You wouldn't even have to change labor laws, just expand the provisions for documenting and approving exceptions.

Your examples aren't employees, and voluntary participation in sports with unlimited potential for reaping riches is hardly comparable to dangerous industrial drudgery with zero opportunity for advancement.

As the article describes, these migrant children are already using forged documents. Your Rx will just make it easier for greedy and uncaring bosses to abuse them.

I'm not sure why you're even bothering, Devil. You're never going to achieve the loosening of laws that preclude dangerous industrial child labor, and you're never going to convince consumers that such child workers are okay. Better to strive for decent options for these kids and an end to their taking jobs from adults.

[O Really]

Yeah, I'm not trying to convince anybody. I've just noticed that in a lot of occasions, people do nothing while trying to find a final and ultimate solution. Consider the very complex and expensive problem of homelessness. You can't buy everyone a house, you can't get a job for every one of them, and some you can't even get to go to an existing shelter. But if you did nothing else but designate an area as being hassle-free, would their lives not become instantly better?

I'm saying, for sake of discussion, that 15 year olds are capable of much more than we may think, and that a 15 year old living on the street might be better off with a job, even if that job involves some manageable risk. Not that that'll ever happen, I know.

[Vrede too]

Hilarious And Relatable Tweets About Work Emails




Ones y'all like? There are a bunch of good ones.

European out-of-offices: “I’m away camping for the summer. Email again in September”

American out-of-offices: “I have left the office for two hours to undergo kidney surgery but you can reach me on my cell anytime”

Judge Tosses Trader Joe’s Trademark Complaint Against Union In Brutal Fashion
The judge wrote the grocery store company had tried to “weaponize the legal system” against its workers, and its attorneys almost deserved sanctions.



Judge Hernán D. Vera was appointed by Joe Biden.
JoltJoeJolt!

[Whack9]

Trader Joe's joins Elon Musk in suing the government, arguing the NLRB is unconstitutional.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/trader-j ... b873b11cc2

Trader Joe’s is facing a litany of union-busting charges before the National Labor Relations Board. The agency’s prosecutors have accused the company of illegally retaliating against workers, firing a union supporter and spreading false information in an effort to chill an organizing campaign.

But in a hearing last Tuesday, the grocer’s attorney briefly summarized a sweeping defense it intends to mount against the charges: The labor board itself, which was created during the New Deal and has refereed private-sector collective bargaining for nearly 90 years, is “unconstitutional.”

The argument would appear to fit inside a broader conservative effort to dismantle the regulatory state, which has taken aim at agencies tasked with enforcing laws to protect workers, consumers and the environment.

The exchange, a transcript of which HuffPost obtained through a public records request, came at the start of a trial to determine whether Trader Joe’s violated workers’ rights. Trader Joe’s’ attorney, Christopher Murphy of the law firm Morgan Lewis, informed the judge, Charles Muhl, that there was “one final thing” the grocery chain wanted to add to its defense before proceedings began.

“The National Labor Relations Act as interpreted and/or applied in this matter, including but not limited to the structure and organization of the National Labor Relations Board and the agency’s administrative law judges, is unconstitutional,” Murphy said.

...

The NLRB is an independent federal agency that was created to protect workers’ rights and foster labor peace. It has both a prosecutorial office, which brings cases against employers and unions, and a 5-member board, which interprets the laws governing bargaining in the private sector. The agency’s administrative law judges issue rulings that can be appealed to the 5-member board for review.

The agency’s constitutionality was upheld by the Supreme Court in 1937, two years after it was created. However, these days, the court’s conservative supermajority has been chipping away at the regulatory state. (SpaceX’s claims track with some of the arguments made in a case involving the Securities and Exchange Commission that’s currently before the Supreme Court, SEC v. Jarkesy.)

Both employers and unions have plenty of gripes about the NLRB and board processes. But a determination that the NLRB itself is unconstitutional could throw labor relations into turmoil. Goldstein said the argument signals to Trader Joe’s workers that the company believes “our members don’t have the right to organize at all.”

[Vrede too]

Trader Joe's joins Elon Musk in suing the government, arguing the NLRB is unconstitutional.

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/trader-j ... b873b11cc2

Bastards. More union-busting assholes:

Georgia Republicans Pass Bill Punishing Union-Friendly Employers
If it survives legal challenges, the legislation would bar companies from receiving state subsidies after voluntarily recognizing their workers’ union.

The Associated Press reported last month that the right-wing American Legislative Exchange Council has been pushing Republican-led states to implement laws barring subsidies for employers that voluntarily recognize unions. A bill similar to the Georgia one passed the Tennessee legislature last year and was signed by GOP Gov. Bill Lee.

Like other states, Georgia offers employers a slew of tax incentives and economic development subsidies to move to the state. According to the subsidy tracker run by the nonprofit Good Jobs First, the largest beneficiaries of Georgia state and local awards have been the automakers Hyundai and Rivian, which in 2022 netted awards worth $2.1 billion and $1.5 billion, respectively.

Any companies receiving subsidies would forfeit them by voluntarily recognizing a union under the Georgia legislation.

Liz Shuler, the president of the AFL-CIO labor federation, took to X on Wednesday to call the bill “appalling,” saying that it “attacks the fundamental freedoms” of both workers and employers. She also said that it violates “long-held precedent” under the National Labor Relations Act....

RepuQs detest business freedom.

[O Really]

So it isn't required for a state to offer incentives to get a company to move there, and apparently there's a lot of discretion involved in who the states pursue. So I suppose they could say they would not pursue or inventivize any union companies. But taking away an already awarded incentive when the company has moved and is operating there is quite a different thing. I think they've got problems with this one - but in the crazy world of the Trump-emboldened right wingers, who knows.

[Vrede too]

I had no idea what Grit was. All I knew was that a newspaper was delivered to my house every day without having to seek it out and it made me wonder about why this paper seemed to only be sold by grubby looking kids out in front of stores. The whole thing had a tinge of sordid to it. But I was just a kid. Sounds like they were an honorable operation after all. Thanks.

Speaking of child labor, about 1 hour from you in Morristown, TN:

Kids as young as 14 were found working at a Tennessee factory that makes lawn mower parts

Immigrant children as young as 14 were found working illegally amid dangerous heavy equipment at a Tennessee firm that makes parts for lawn mowers sold by John Deere and other companies, according to Labor Department officials.

The company, Tuff Torq, was fined nearly $300,000 for hiring 10 children. As part of a consent agreement with the federal government, the company is also required to set aside $1.5 million to help the children who were illegally employed. Ryan Pott, general counsel for Tuff Torq’s majority owner, the Japanese firm Yanmar, acknowledged the violations to NBC News.

Nice, up to $150K/kid.

“The department will not tolerate companies profiting on the backs of children employed unlawfully in dangerous occupations,” said Seema Nanda, the department’s chief legal officer, whose office obtained the consent judgment against Tuff Torq. “Tuff Torq has agreed to disgorge profits, which will go to the benefit of the children. This sends a clear message: putting children in harm’s way in the workplace is not only illegal, but also comes with significant financial consequences.”...

GoJoe,Seema&Julie SuGo

... Pott, the general counsel for Tuff Torq’s majority owner, said the child workers were temporary and were not hired directly by Tuff Torq. He said they used fake names and false credentials to obtain jobs through a temporary staffing agency, and said Tuff Torq is “transitioning” away from doing business with the staffing company....

That was intended to create this plausible deniability, as will the use of the next staffing company.

... John Deere did not respond to a request for comment....

It's got 2 layers of plausible deniability, and will continue purchasing from Tuff Torq. Complicit.

[neoplacebo]

I had no idea what Grit was. All I knew was that a newspaper was delivered to my house every day without having to seek it out and it made me wonder about why this paper seemed to only be sold by grubby looking kids out in front of stores. The whole thing had a tinge of sordid to it. But I was just a kid. Sounds like they were an honorable operation after all. Thanks.

Speaking of child labor, about 1 hour from you in Morristown, TN:

Kids as young as 14 were found working at a Tennessee factory that makes lawn mower parts

Immigrant children as young as 14 were found working illegally amid dangerous heavy equipment at a Tennessee firm that makes parts for lawn mowers sold by John Deere and other companies, according to Labor Department officials.

The company, Tuff Torq, was fined nearly $300,000 for hiring 10 children. As part of a consent agreement with the federal government, the company is also required to set aside $1.5 million to help the children who were illegally employed. Ryan Pott, general counsel for Tuff Torq’s majority owner, the Japanese firm Yanmar, acknowledged the violations to NBC News.

Nice, up to $150K/kid.

“The department will not tolerate companies profiting on the backs of children employed unlawfully in dangerous occupations,” said Seema Nanda, the department’s chief legal officer, whose office obtained the consent judgment against Tuff Torq. “Tuff Torq has agreed to disgorge profits, which will go to the benefit of the children. This sends a clear message: putting children in harm’s way in the workplace is not only illegal, but also comes with significant financial consequences.”...

GoJoe,Seema&Julie SuGo

... Pott, the general counsel for Tuff Torq’s majority owner, said the child workers were temporary and were not hired directly by Tuff Torq. He said they used fake names and false credentials to obtain jobs through a temporary staffing agency, and said Tuff Torq is “transitioning” away from doing business with the staffing company....

That was intended to create this plausible deniability, as will the use of the next staffing company.

... John Deere did not respond to a request for comment....

It's got 2 layers of plausible deniability, and will continue purchasing from Tuff Torq. Complicit.

Yeah, I saw that story yesterday. Morristown is just down the road; the first town in the next county. Hawkins County. It has the same reputation for dumbfuckery as Madison County NC They had some big controvery in local government a few years ago. I forget what it was all a;bout but it had something to do with the town itself about to go broke. I think some people got fired. Others probably got promotions. I bet Marsha Blackburn hates this since it will now force that place to hire workers at normal wages instead of these kids. Marsha looks the other way on immigrants when it's good for business. crazy bitch

[Vrede too]

Yeah, I saw that story yesterday. Morristown is just down the road; the first town in the next county. Hawkins County. It has the same reputation for dumbfuckery as Madison County NC They had some big controvery in local government a few years ago. I forget what it was all a;bout but it had something to do with the town itself about to go broke. I think some people got fired. Others probably got promotions. I bet Marsha Blackburn hates this since it will now force that place to hire workers at normal wages instead of these kids. Marsha looks the other way on immigrants when it's good for business. crazy bitch

MarshaMarshaMarsha probably loves criminal bosses:

Biden Labor Appointee Fires Back At 'Lawbreakers' SpaceX, Amazon, Trader Joe’s
The federal labor board’s general counsel said “deep-pocket, low-road employers” were trying to challenge the agency’s constitutionality.

[neoplacebo]

Yeah, I saw that story yesterday. Morristown is just down the road; the first town in the next county. Hawkins County. It has the same reputation for dumbfuckery as Madison County NC They had some big controvery in local government a few years ago. I forget what it was all a;bout but it had something to do with the town itself about to go broke. I think some people got fired. Others probably got promotions. I bet Marsha Blackburn hates this since it will now force that place to hire workers at normal wages instead of these kids. Marsha looks the other way on immigrants when it's good for business. crazy bitch

MarshaMarshaMarsha probably loves criminal bosses:

Biden Labor Appointee Fires Back At 'Lawbreakers' SpaceX, Amazon, Trader Joe’s
The federal labor board’s general counsel said “deep-pocket, low-road employers” were trying to challenge the agency’s constitutionality.

Yeah, MarshaMarshaMarsha is a dependable shill for big business or anything else she can suck money from. I've heard that she prevented the DEA from shutting down and arresting some opioid pill distributors. I wouldn't put it past her. She's crazy and I'm glad there's not much chance of her showing up around here. She wouldn't like me.

[Vrede too]

Workers took off the books reward PTO authorized by their supervisor, got fired for doing so.

$80 million verdict for three workers fired for taking ‘off the record’ time off in California

... Wednesday’s verdict included damages for economic harm, reputational damages and $25 million in punitive damages for each of the employees — Melinda Brantley, Nicholas Lardie and Daniel Koos — who were part of Zurich American’s workers’ compensation division, Bohm spokesman Daniel Harary said in announcing the $80,252,412 verdict details.

Ouch.

... Zurich American argued in court filings that the employees were fired after “time theft” that resulted in the three being paid a total of more than $100,000 over two years.

“Theft is not justified simply because your boss told you to do it,” the company argued.

(Sacramento attorney Lawrance) Bohm said Zurich American “maliciously defamed three very good people from our Sacramento community,” and that his clients did not want to be involved in a lawsuit.

Bohm initially offered to settle the case for $150,000 for each plaintiff but was rebuffed, he said.

OPPS!

In 2021, he tried again, offering to settle for $500,000 each but was turned down. Finally, before trial began in Sacramento Superior Court last month, he offered to settle for $2 million per plaintiff but was told no, he said.

Opps, opps.

“Zurich has had years to prevent this and do right,” Bohm said, adding that company supervisors spent 71 minutes investigating the allegations against the employees before firing them.

“For a company that prides itself on fairness, that’s frightening,” he said. “Thousands of us in California have claims being handled by Zurich.

“If this is the way it treats its employees what does that mean about what we can expect from them when we need them?”

[Whack9]

Apparently it's become a thing (or maybe always has been a thing, I don't know) where companies ask employees to donate PTO to others who've run out due to things like extended medical emergencies. It happens where I work.

My question is, why can't the company just be like "Don't sweat it. Get well, and don't worry about not having PTO."

Time off policy is completely controlled by the company. They can do whatever they want.

[O Really]

It's a bean-counter thing.

My question is, why can't the company just be like "Don't sweat it. Get well, and don't worry about not having PTO."

It's an HR (or maybe in some cases lawyer) thing. Companies hate to have to make decisions, judgement in gray areas and risk somebody claiming discrimination or favouritism. Depends, too, in some companies if the employees are exempt salaried or hourly. If they're hourly, the bean counters like to count the value of PTO as additional pay since no work was done.

If I were running the company, I'd be more adaptive.

[Whack9]

It's a bean-counter thing.

My question is, why can't the company just be like "Don't sweat it. Get well, and don't worry about not having PTO."

It's an HR (or maybe in some cases lawyer) thing. Companies hate to have to make decisions, judgement in gray areas and risk somebody claiming discrimination or favouritism. Depends, too, in some companies if the employees are exempt salaried or hourly. If they're hourly, the bean counters like to count the value of PTO as additional pay since no work was done.

If I were running the company, I'd be more adaptive.

Okay, that makes sense. Especially about the potential favoritism accusations.It's not as dystopian as I thought.