Saturday, March 06, 2004
Weird week at work...
Actually, I guess the weirdness started last week. A rumor was going around that there would be more layoffs, then Dan and I started training in the page output area. That training stopped after just one night...no explanation.
Then on Monday, it was decided that we should start learning InDesign, an application that will be used when we switch ad production systems. But I didn't go back to train...I guess we were too busy with work.
On Wednesday, the president of the union met with us and informed us that the company does indeed want to lay off eight more people, but my employer's hands are sort of tied because they already have one suit against them for illegally laying off 10 people last year. So they can lay off, but only if they want another suit. We were also informed that the plan now is to have us working side by side with the department who has been stealing our work for the past seven years. I don't know what to think about that.
Then Thursday, I saw why the company wants to cut back even more....the plans for their new building were announced. The project is estimated to cost $83 million!! I don't think eliminating eight people from our department is going to save them that much money, though. How about trimming off a few of the execs that get $500,000 bonuses? I guess that would be too easy. Anyway, that night, I was first told to train on InDesign, then it was decided to bring ads from the other paper for us to work on. As far as I know, our contract forbids removing work from any facility...the can fax us work orders, but the original has to stay there. Our illustrious foreman either didn't know or didn't care about this and did it anyway. We got the extra ads done early, though, so the foreman changed his mind again and had me go train. Luckily, the course is in book form, so we can go at our own pace without an instructor present, and it is very easy to learn.
I think the problem is too many bosses and not enough regular workers. The peons are definitely an endangered species. If they get rid of eight more of us, who the heck is gonna do the work? Are they all just gonna stand there and boss each other around?
Oh, and to top it all off, we have a union meeting tomorrow. I certainly wish that the people who were whining the loudest at the work meeting on Wednesday would show up at the union hall and find out for themselves what's going on. But they'd rather complain about the decisions that are made in their absence. For the executive committee meeting tomorrow (right before the union meeting), I have to write up a proposal for a change in the by-laws. Not looking forward to it because when it goes before the rest of the union members, there will be the inevitable bickering. Oh, well.
Then on Monday, it was decided that we should start learning InDesign, an application that will be used when we switch ad production systems. But I didn't go back to train...I guess we were too busy with work.
On Wednesday, the president of the union met with us and informed us that the company does indeed want to lay off eight more people, but my employer's hands are sort of tied because they already have one suit against them for illegally laying off 10 people last year. So they can lay off, but only if they want another suit. We were also informed that the plan now is to have us working side by side with the department who has been stealing our work for the past seven years. I don't know what to think about that.
Then Thursday, I saw why the company wants to cut back even more....the plans for their new building were announced. The project is estimated to cost $83 million!! I don't think eliminating eight people from our department is going to save them that much money, though. How about trimming off a few of the execs that get $500,000 bonuses? I guess that would be too easy. Anyway, that night, I was first told to train on InDesign, then it was decided to bring ads from the other paper for us to work on. As far as I know, our contract forbids removing work from any facility...the can fax us work orders, but the original has to stay there. Our illustrious foreman either didn't know or didn't care about this and did it anyway. We got the extra ads done early, though, so the foreman changed his mind again and had me go train. Luckily, the course is in book form, so we can go at our own pace without an instructor present, and it is very easy to learn.
I think the problem is too many bosses and not enough regular workers. The peons are definitely an endangered species. If they get rid of eight more of us, who the heck is gonna do the work? Are they all just gonna stand there and boss each other around?
Oh, and to top it all off, we have a union meeting tomorrow. I certainly wish that the people who were whining the loudest at the work meeting on Wednesday would show up at the union hall and find out for themselves what's going on. But they'd rather complain about the decisions that are made in their absence. For the executive committee meeting tomorrow (right before the union meeting), I have to write up a proposal for a change in the by-laws. Not looking forward to it because when it goes before the rest of the union members, there will be the inevitable bickering. Oh, well.
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