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Kickstarter's Staff Is Unionizing (theverge.com)
An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Verge: The staff of Kickstarter announced plans to unionize today. If recognized, Kickstarter would be the first major tech company with union representation in the United States. Members of the union, which goes by Kickstarter United, say they want to improve inclusivity and transparency at the company. To unionize, they're working with the Office and Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU) Local 153. In a statement, the union said: "Kickstarter United is proud to start the process of unionizing to safeguard and enrich Kickstarter's charter commitments to creativity, equity, and a positive impact on society. We trust in the democratic process and are confident that the leadership of Kickstarter stands with us in that effort. Kickstarter has always been a trailblazer, and this is a pivotal moment for tech. We want to set the standard for the entire industry. Now is the time. Come together. Unionize."
In a world of Facebook and Twitter, Kickstarter feels almost quaint in its mission -- "to help bring creative projects to life" -- and in its charter as a public benefit corporation, which means that the company is "obligated to consider the impact of their decisions on society, not only shareholders." Its staff unionizing means the company will also have to consider more seriously its responsibilities to its employees. It also means that its fellows in Silicon Valley and beyond could be next. Kickstarter is fundamentally a tech company, and its staff unionizing with the OPEIU shows a way forward for other employees in the space. Kickstarter's staff is unionizing because they want to "promote our collective values: inclusion and solidarity, transparency and accountability; a seat at the table," the organizers write, noting that in the decade that Kickstarter has been around, it's democratized crowdfunding and brought more than 150,000 projects to life. "Kickstarter's efforts are incomplete, and these values have failed to manifest in our workplace. We can do better together -- for ourselves and our industry."
In a world of Facebook and Twitter, Kickstarter feels almost quaint in its mission -- "to help bring creative projects to life" -- and in its charter as a public benefit corporation, which means that the company is "obligated to consider the impact of their decisions on society, not only shareholders." Its staff unionizing means the company will also have to consider more seriously its responsibilities to its employees. It also means that its fellows in Silicon Valley and beyond could be next. Kickstarter is fundamentally a tech company, and its staff unionizing with the OPEIU shows a way forward for other employees in the space. Kickstarter's staff is unionizing because they want to "promote our collective values: inclusion and solidarity, transparency and accountability; a seat at the table," the organizers write, noting that in the decade that Kickstarter has been around, it's democratized crowdfunding and brought more than 150,000 projects to life. "Kickstarter's efforts are incomplete, and these values have failed to manifest in our workplace. We can do better together -- for ourselves and our industry."
Fucking WHY? You take people's money and solve the occasional dispute. That's about it. In what reality does the inclusion of a union aid in this task? There is literately not a single fucking task that is performed at Kickstart that is either dangerous or dirty; which is about the only legitimate reason why you would need actual union protection.
Forming a union is in no way a magic panacea for creating a better working environment, no matter how many far left retards try to tell you otherwise.
As someone with a disability which lets companies tick off their inclusion and diversity check marks if they hire me, I wouldn't unionize for this. Discrimination is already illegal. Sure it still happens, I've lost multiple jobs due to it, but you end up not wanting to work there anyway. As long as you aren't dirt poor, any organization discriminating against you during the hiring process is a good thing because you won't want to work with those people. Forced inclusion only works over generations, it doesn't work overnight. Working at a place with artificial inclusion is a horrible experience. Even if you are good at what you do, people will assume you only got the job to meet the metrics. So not only will the discriminators still discriminate against you, more people will join them and the discrimination becomes more insidious because they can no longer just say it to your face.
If you have an issue, disclose it right before signing the acceptance letter and ask if they think there might be problems and mention you don't want to waste their time and hopefully they aren't trying to waste your time.
Cops in any state and NY teachers come to mind. The former have plenty of examples of outright massive fuck-ups or corruption that don't get addressed because of the strength of the police unions. NYC teachers are so infamous for this that there are numerous stories about it, and it even has a Wikipedia article.
I'm not one of those people who believe all unions are evil or that they shouldn't exist. I personally wouldn't be likely to want to join one, but if other people want to start one, that's their business and not mine. However, it's not a misinformed myth that unions will keep people around who really should be fired. Nor are the infallible in their decision making and they're as capable of any vice as the company board.