by Sam Pierce
Naturally, this being the workers Utopia of Illinois, the Winchester Division of Olin Corporation is the villain and the three-headed beast, Cerberus, is the heroic protagonist. The guardian of Hades has three distinct heads in this epic struggle. Although its heads differ, they work in concert to defeat the enemy and banish the reviled employer from the land. Each head is a crucial component, without which victory might be seriously delayed or even denied.
Although the beast might enjoy the instant gratification of defeating the forces of employment in one grand battle, it has decided to toy with its prey. It prefers to wound and drive from its realm one portion of the hated company at a time. This way, the weakened enemy remains to serve as the target of hatred, which can be nurtured for a few years in preparation for the next assault.
The paradox presented by Cerberus is that it banishes the villainous employer for the sake of the "worker." One must not question the logic of eliminating employers for the sake of those employed. The suspension of disbelief must be applied, (much like Senator Shrillary Clinton listening to the testimony of General Petraeus).
The Telegraph has a piece announcing the possibility of Winchester moving its Centerfire operations to Oxford, MS, where it moved its Rimfire business in 2004. "Olin may move Centerfire operation" is the headline. The article has an interesting quote from East Alton's Democrat Mayor Fred Bright and is followed by numerous comments, most of which seem to be from the "union good - company evil" perspective. I suppose reading Mayor Bright's remarks might cause one to wonder if his insurance business is operated for profit or if he charges only what he must to cover his expenses and provide a service.
East Alton Mayor Fred Bright said it would hurt his community, but his experience with the company shows that is not a major concern for management.
"Olin cares for nothing but Olin, itself," Bright said.
Oh the sweet talking of an Illinois Democrat politician! They do know how to encourage businesses to come to their communities do they not?
What does this have to do with Cerberus? Cerberus, in our story, has as its heads the unions, Madison County, and Illinois' anti-business political climate. The noble creature must put the evil company in its place, even if it means denying the workers it purports to protect a means to support themselves. This is the dark blue Democrat Hades of Illinois, after all. When one considers this coupled with the reality that Olin's primary plant is in the the judicially infamous lawsuit haven that is Madison County, it would appear that Olin must eventually leave the area or suffer the consequences. Unlike Fred Bright's insurance business, Olin isn't likely to exist as a not for profit entity whose goal is to provide sustenance for labor leaders and a Democrat led community.
I have some first hand insight on the situation in East Alton. From August of 1996 until that beautiful day in November of 2005 I worked in the Engineering Department of Olin's Winchester Division. I was witness to many occurrences that spurred amazement that a company was able to function under such ridiculous union terms, (terms to which the management had agreed). Productivity seemed to be the enemy of the various unions (Olin has more than one).
Need to move a piece of equipment? Call a millwright.
Does the equipment have any air cylinders? Call a pipefitter to take care of the air lines.
Get an electrician to take care of the electrical connection... even if it is a matter of pulling one plug.
Did an angle iron leg break during transport? Have the millwright take the equipment to the weld shop, were the welder will do his thing.
Did part of the equipment become detached or was some disassembly required to move the equipment? Chances are you have to figure out who is responsible to work on it based on what the pieces happen to be. Often millwrights and machinists are at odds over which work should go to which trade.
I recall an instance when an engineer brought a case of shell cases back from an equipment trial at a vendor's facility. A transportation employee saw the engineer walking into the plant with the shell cases. Naturally, this is grounds for a grievance. The transportation employee with the most seniority is due four hours of pay for this violation of his union's contract. The transportation employee wasn't content to simply file a grievance. He followed the engineer back to his office to make a scene and let the engineer know just how grievous his transgression had been. The engineer's office wasn't across the hall or next to the particular plant, instead it was located at the other part of the plant complex perhaps a mile away.
Near the end of 2000, the union contracts were up and they decided to go on strike. Being a salaried employee, I had to work twelve hour days, six days a week to help maintain production. The most vivid memory I have is walking in past the few picketers and being called a "scab". That is logical. After all, salaried employees should quit their jobs over the "unfair" contract offer to the unions, despite the fact that the union members were not willing to quit their jobs over their own contracts! Perhaps I should have seen this ridiculously over-developed sense of entitlement as an omen of the state of society that would eventually elect Barack Obama to read TOTUS.
In addition to the raise in pay I received in moving on to another employer, the cost of health insurance was so dramatically less outside of Madison County, my reduced contribution felt like an additional substantial raise. Our move was around the same time that, among the doctors driven out of the area by Madison County's outrageous medical malpractice system (or should I say business for the slip and fall parasitic attorneys who infest the county?), was my wife's Ob-gyn who had delivered our four oldest children and cared for my wife following a miscarriage.
Illinois, like Michigan and other deep blue hells seems content to bite the hand that feeds it. I suppose the liberal mindset tells its leaders that the feeding hand will never be withdrawn or if it is, perhaps divine intervention will prevent its starvation. Maybe President Hugo Obama should nationalize Winchester for the sake of his union supporters. After all, Mississippi is a red state and has already benefited from round 1 of Cerberus' battle against the evil employer.
Cross-posted from "The Immoderate Blog"
