For more than 20 years I was a union member as a full-time firefighter in the state of New Hampshire; I have first-hand knowledge and understanding of what it means to be in a union.
My first concern regarding unionization with the NEA is that while they claim to represents my needs as an employee, I am not an educator. The focus of the NEA is on the educators and students, while they are both important groups, my needs are different and may not always align with theirs.
Equally concerning to me is that in order for the union to be effective it must be working towards common needs and goals of its members. The group seeking to unionize at UNH is widely varied; for example, facilities workers may be seeking better on-call and/or call-back policies, whereas someone who works in athletics may be more concerned about perceived eroding health benefits.
During contract negotiations, employees are represented by the union, which provides a single, united voice in the matter of pay and benefits. When negotiations begin, all benefits are on the table as bargaining chips — including those that may be important to you. After the give-and-take of negotiations, health benefit contributions by the employee may increase so that other employees can finally see an increase in shift differential. The individual union members, once lumped together, do not get to decide what is important; the union will decide and negotiate accordingly.
The message being sent by union organizers is that the NEA will solve all of the employees’ problems — real or perceived — that are in the workplace. This is simply not true. We have all seen the messages from both sides of this effort; several of us have been subjected to high-pressure “conversations” from colleagues who claim to be working for “us.” We all hope for a good workplace with fair benefits, but I know I am not alone in opposing the unionization effort.
As I stated at the beginning of this letter, I have first-hand knowledge of being in a union and fully understand the pros and cons. In my opinion it is not right for UNH.
—James S. Lapolla, Emergency Management Coordinator
UNH Police Department
Would you like to submit a statement or testimonial about the efforts to organize UNH staff? Submit here.
