by Ken Vincent, Featured Contributor
Are you pro-union, anti-union, or neutral?
IN MY BOOK (So Many Hotels, So Little Time) I made some comments about unions, though much more can be said. I have always fought against my staff being unionized and I never lost an election. However, that doesn’t mean that I’m anti-union. Unions are like management 
teams in that they come in both good and bad styles.
A good union is pro-employees of course, but also pro-management and pro-ownership. The union attitude and actions are driven by the local business agent and local officers to a large degree. No different in that respect than the company being driven by local management. Smart union leadership knows that when they and management fight the employees ultimately lose. They know too that if the company isn’t successful then there is no employment.
So why did I always oppose union organization of my hotels/companies? Because business agents get transferred by the national/international union. Officers of the local get elected and often change. So, while you may have a cooperative union today, it can turn uncooperative in a few months. Besides, if you have good management/ownership then the union can do no more for the employees than you can do on your own.
