To be in a union but not out on strike tomorrow?

[ILovePud]

I'm an NHS clinician and my union has called a strike tomorrow. Strikes have not usually been well supported in my work place and I already had a clinic booked tomorrow. We all had to notify our management last week whether we would be striking and I said no. I felt uncomfortable with the idea of having to contact specific patients and cancel their appointments in a way that I wouldn't have done if it was a case of just omitting to book that clinic. I've become increasingly uncomfortable with this decision over the weekend as I've had some contact with colleagues and it seems that many of them will be striking and that there will be a picket line. I'll have to go in now and feel like I'm in a lose lose situation where I'm either letting down patients or letting down my colleagues. My colleagues are lovely people and none of them are going to have a go at me though there may be some more subtle guilt tripping. The strike's been called over the 1% pay rise offer rather than wider issues and whilst I think this is a crap offer compared with some of the other service issues in the local NHS at the moment this seems like small potatoes, for me at least. My reasons for being a union member have always been more about having access to support in the event of potential employment problems rather than collective bargaining, though obviously if they pay offer gets upped I'll feel the benefit of this along with everyone else and I do feel a bit bad about that. Am I being unreasonable to not be striking?

did you vote against strike action? i ask because most people i know who 'opt out' of strikes didnt even bother to vote in the first place

yabvu to consider yourself above everyone else. next time, speak to your union.first

We try to provide fun for our charges every day of the school year wherever possible. Ofsted hasn't banned fun and enjoyment, nor as the government. Every teacher and TA I work with believes in providing children with the best possible education that is engaging, enriching and fullfilling.

But some things are not right. Sometimes adults need to stand up for themselves and for what they believe in, in order to preserve a high quality teaching profession - bd yes, that may mean one or two days of strike action which of course will affect their pupils for one or two days - but that's the pay off. Short term loss for long term gain. Looking at the bigger picture.

And in most situations the strikes are known about for a long time in advance and wherever possible disruption is avoided which includes changing dates of trips, etc

And yes, one teacher alone might not be able to make a difference to the national picture. But when those individual teachers come together in collective action it can make a difference - but it means lots of individual teachers standing up and acting together.

As said: it's the bigger picture; short term loss for long term gain.

My Dad (and many, many, many others) actively voted against strike action in the 80's. Didn't do them any good at all. How many people did you know in the 80's, for that particular action?

I have definitely heard people who break picket lines being called scabs and blacklegs both by people on the picket line and by their colleagues the next day. Usually with a variety of other words added in for good measure.

Strike breaking is still regarded as a betrayal.

Yes in my opinion, because a particular school trip did more for my often bullied, socially isolated and socially inept DDs self confidence than anything else in 9 years of school.

(Sorry - crossed posts, my comment was meant for SanFairyAnne - which sounds a bit of a Welsh saying, actually)????

We never have a picket line at our school gate as we collectively feel it isn't fair on the young children going to school.

At our school only the classes affected are shut. Those with non striking teachers (from different unions) go to school as normal.

I think that is normal, is it not, Hulababy? Non-striking teachers do their normal working day, but they do not cover for striking colleagues. That's how it works here, in any case.

Evans - I wasn't in the steel worker strikes in the 80s, but I was out on strike on many occasions back then, including strikes over GCHQ - which was to protect the right to be in a trade union (thatcher government tried to ban unions there). That was back in 1984 - same time as the miners strikes. It was a crap time.

And yes, I did vote for strike action.

Every person has to make their own decision whether they are part of a union or not. Just because you are in a union they don't control you and you are entitled to choose to strike or not. Using scab and that terminology is pathetic and bullying - trying to make someone do something they don't want to do.

My compromise would be to do your clinic but then head straight home or into the line, do no extra work but see your clinic patients.

And yes my father and grandfather were miners in the strikes!

Strike breaking is still regarded as a betrayal

Sometimes, however, Unions disagree. I can remember being on a picket line myself, when a supervisor drove his car directly at me.

One Union might call a strike, another may not. Who can tell who are the strikebreakers? Dodgy ground

And what true striker (under the guise of what a "true" striker stands for) would happily stand by whilst a friend and colleague loses his house and car, and have his family wrecked, because he is afraid to go into work, intimidated, threatened?

That is NOT what the Unions started out to achieve, I'm sure.

I think it shows a lot of integrity to make a decision that you are clearly uncomfortable with and that is the more difficult of the two options for the sake of other people.

I am thankful that there are people who put patients first. There is a lot wrong with the NHS, enough that rescheduling appointments for patients and then making them wait yet another ridiculously long length of time isn't going to make a difference. It's just going to damage health and cause distress to people who are already having to cope with something difficult.

Personally, I'd rather be called a scab than be someone who let down vulnerable people who rely on me to do my job for the sake of their health.

See it another way. I have a hospital apt tomorrow (not been told its cancelled)
Last week attended hospital taking time out of work to leave blood samples in readiness for apt
Tomorrow taking time out of work again to attend the apt
if apt is cancelled those bloods will have to be done again - more time out of work
And I work in private sector no union support luckily work ok at the moment with me taking this time out of work to attend these appts
Not fair patients should have to suffer.

I am a teacher and I won't join a union for the reasons really on this thread.

I don't support strike action and won't pretend I do.

People shouting 'Scab' just mean. 'How dare you disagree with me.'

YANBU - I admire you for your dedication to your parents. I don't think you are being selfish - you are putting very vulnerable peoples' needs before your own and that of your colleagues, who perhaps should be taking a leaf out of your book on this instance, as you say the issue is rather small potatoes. You are risking being shunned and blacklisted by your co-workers, so you can honour your commitment to the people who need your care.

That's not selfish. That's the opposite.

Purple - yes.

Parents??? Patients...Obviously. duh.

But in the long run it may not be beneficial to future patients/clients/pupils.

Don't get me wrong - Unions have done a whole lot of good for this nation, over the years, during times of great hardship for the worker. There are times, however, when they have, themselves, become the bullying force, and done absolutely no good for the people they purport to represent.

Sometimes both sides need to be examined. The bullied can become the bully.

I have no problem with those who disagree with strike action and join non striking unions or no union at all. I have absolutely zero respect for those who join unions and insist on remaining members while making their own decision not to join a strike which has been voted on and arranged on the back of that vote.

And while I doubt I'd be actively rude to such people I don't see why I shouldn't tell them how I feel.

Teachers have been striking intermittently since 2011.

We have achieved sweet FA.

I am not convinced at all by striking and I won't do it. However, "contact the union" is inevitably the first piece of advice given at any discord in work matters and thus it is generally seen to be unwise not to be a member of one. I don't personally feel this is the case but I can understand people wanting to be a member of a union, and not wanting to strike.

Ilovesooty, to me, that's like saying 'you voted the Tories in, so you can't complain.'

I do understand what you're saying but people are allowed individual views.

Not being in favour of striking doesn't mean you don't support what the strike is trying to achieve.

you can't bully someone who isn't forced to be in a union - how silly

the concept of unions isn't a hard one - you join as a democratic collective and in joining you agree to abide by the democratic decision of the membership - including the decision to strike

In the NHS exceptions are always made for staff to cover essential posts so no one dies - at best they are inconvenienced

You don't HAVE to join a union - and you can join non striking unions as well