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Comment by captainzidgel | Hacker News Reader

> IF YOU’RE PAYING DUES… it will be RESTRICTIVE meaning it won’t be easy to be as helpful and social with each other. So be a DOER, stay friendly and get things done versus paying dues

What is this line even supposed to mean? Probably the most incomprehensible union busting talking point I've ever heard.

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My wife worked in the event planning industry - the few unionized venues she had to deal with were a huge pain loaded with restrictions. As a client you couldn't even move a table by yourself on the spot - a union employee had to do it as part of an assigned task. Perhaps it's warning of similar red tape that gets in the way of doing work directly.

I was confused at that as well. Ultimately I decided it was a veiled threat that management would be angry and make their lives harder.

That, or they're pitting union and non-union members against each other.

Usually it's all or nothing: a place unionizes, everyone is a member of the union. Technically, you could say "no I'm not going to be a member". But you're still part of what is called the bargaining unit. In some cases it is even possible to opt out of the union dues... there was a Supreme Court case about it recently that came down on the side of allowing opt-out, but I don't know the full extent/ramifications of that ruling.

The ramifications are pretty massive. here is a decent summary.

https://www3.swipeclock.com/blog/union-employers-what-you-ne...

"Doer" sounds like they're trying to bring in the "maker" moniker into jobs where you don't really make anything. "Maker" sounds fun and positive - you're someone who creates something! Not really it has the same kind of effect when you're not making anything and you're just doing what you were ordered to do.

Probably the part where some employees will pay dues and some won’t, introducing a rift between employees where formerly there was none.

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