Picture and thought of the day: Life can move as fast as a train that you sometimes fall off course and need to get back on track. As long as you’re showing up daily, you have the power to change your way of thinking, change your life, achieve total transformation and “be the change.”

 

 

The following writings below are for recreational reading purposes. It’s tough to keep a job in today’s world of employment and financial uncertainty. Despite that some people have to engage in “collective bargaining,” you must always have a mind to have your own “side hustle” going outside your place of employment, or if unemployed for the moment.  Side hustling with or without a day job is a good thing to do. It allows you to not only “collectively bargain” for better terms of employment and wages, but it also builds confidence, humility, and helps you express yourself creatively in your “side hustle skillset.” Doing something you love to do as a side hustle helps you stay hopeful about the future and builds self-confidence, even if your collective bargaining fails at the negotiation table between you and your current employer.

 

 

 

If your efforts fail to “bargain collectively,” it’s not the end of the world. Maybe it’s long overdue for you to get your side hustle business going now if you haven’t already started.

 

 

 

The following is food for thought and recreational reading purposes:

 

This case is set in college dorms where RAs work. Does your college or university have dorms? Are they staffed with RAs or a position similar to RAs?

The university I currently attend doesn’t have RA’s. However, I’m confident other universities has RA’s. Taking a quick look at their job roles as undergraduate students, they’re charged with significant responsibility that’s good for building their employment resume.

Would you consider the RA position to be a job? Does this mean that RAs are employees of the university, or are they students? Why do you think that might be important?

Honestly, I would consider an RA position to be a solid form of employment if the job pays or not and here’s why. For starters, undergrad students can only qualify for the job of an RA if they have a 2.4 GPA or greater.

 

 

7 things RA’s are charged with responsibility wise:

• Administrative duties
• Community building
• Crisis intervention
• General
• Performance appraisals
• Resource and referral agent
• Staff meetings and coverage
• Training

 

 

In my personal opinion, these responsibilities charged to RA’s require commitment, and open mind to being teachable, and having relationship building and sustaining characteristics because they’re dealing with the general public and are also the face of the university as “paid employees.” RA’s are important people because they wear 2 hats; student and university employee, thus, their actions are a direct representation of their home training and their institution “as previously mentioned.” Sadly, Some were terminated for allegedly serving alcohol to minors. This accusation messed up the university careers and jeopardized the future of RN’s responsible for such adverse actions because now, they can’t use the university nor their former RA post as an employment reference. Furthermore, having such a charge on their student record might be visible to future employers who request a former RN’s job candidate college transcript.

 

 

 

Why didn’t employees at UMass Amherst engage in collective bargaining after passage of the NLRA in 1935? There was no obligation for employees to engage in collective bargaining at the time. Employees on all levels were free to do as they pleased and form their own union groups. Furthermore, the GEO (Graduate Employee Organization) was formed in 1991. In my personal opinion, this was the ultimate organization to be an affiliate because they covered everyone across the board ranging from teachers, ARD’s, and research assistants, and over 2,500 graduate students. Overall, UMass Amherst employees had “wide discretion” what they wanted to be apart of, unobligated to join collective bargaining. If everything was all good for employees at the time, why rock the boat?

 

 

 

Why did the passage of the Massachusetts General Law in 1973 have such a big effect on union organizing at UMass Amherst?

In my view of this, the passage of the Massachusetts Gen. Law in 1973 had such a big affect on union organizing because “the little people such as food workers had a voice and the unions in their corner fighting for them.” The AFSCME was now in the corner of the “little people,” and he felt a sense of security about being treated right on the job. Moreover, exempt and nonexempt staff had a choice of who they wanted to align themselves with in terms of what union or organization they wanted to join. Because of wide discretion of what organizations are joining, union representation grew significantly after the passage of this law in 1973.

 

 

 

What role does labor law play in encouraging or discouraging unionization?

Labor law gives a comprehensive breakdown of employee rights. I believe label lore makes a clear and concise to the working class “at least those interested in joining a union” about the pros and cons of unionization. Labor law is supposed to be engineered to be in the corner of “the little guy.” lastly, labor law can also be seen as a double handed advocate for promoting unionization or discouraging unionization. And if someone feels discouraged from joining a union after a labor law inquiry, it may be because of whatever reason or they read the fine print about disclaimers of being a union member and how their rights and privileges of the union fighting for employee rights are “limited.”

 

 

 

What are the key factors that led some RAs to have interest in union representation? Do you think that RAs have legitimate job-related concerns, or are the RA complaints overstated?

• Three key factors that led our A’s have interest in union representation were:
• RA complaints about dignity and respect on the job
  Being paid low wages such as only $140 weekly
• Having a voice that’ll be heard by everyone through union representation

 

I do feel RA’s have legitimate job-related concerns because they are human beings working in a place of employment, and they should be treated with dignity and respect if they’re not being treated with such at this time.they were only being paid $140 weekly with $90 weekly being taking out a loan for housing costs. That leaves them with a measly $50 to get bio one. Who could live on that? And who could live on being paid $2.50 an hour? That sounds pretty inhumane, doesn’t it? That is, if that is true concerning hourly wages.

 

 

Why did the MLRC determine that RAs and CDAs were employees? Do you agree with the MLRC decision? Why? Why not?

The MLRC made such a determination because “The MLRC also determined that RAs and CDAs at the university belonged in the same bargaining unit rather than in separate bargaining units or in bargaining units that would include RAs and CDAs from the other University of Massachusetts campuses. The MLRC determined that RAs and CDAs on the Amherst campus shared a unique community of interest based on sharing virtually identical terms and conditions of employment (Board of Trustees, 2002).” (Excerpt from Employee and Labor Relations).

I do agree with the MLRC position and their outlook because if you’re an employee, and regardless if you’re a student or not, they felt that students who were also employees at the same collective bargaining rights and the same general rights as full-time career University employees. If you’re working at the University as an employee, you’re an employee no matter what even if you’re an undergraduate or graduate student. As always a person is working and their earning an honest paycheck, I believe they should have the same rights as everyone else working there.

 

 

 

Something to truly think about: College is definitely a good place for higher educational achievement. However, when you get your degree, don’t just use it to get a job. Help others who are unfortunate by starting a side hustle that shows people where scholarships for college are. If you see the good in a person that others don’t, lift that person up and help them make healthy changes in their life, by putting them on the road for higher education success and help them get “free money for college.” Or show them how to start a future million dollar business. That’s honest and genuine hospitality from the heart by helping someone without expectation.

 

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