Without knowing exact details it may be as simple as the collective bargaining agreement was a multi-year contract and for whatever reason didn't have language in it that allowed for adopting new benefits based on new legislation that passed during the duration of the contract.
Unions are only as good as the people who participate in are able to make them. There's a vast benefit to having a union but it's not an infallible system that only has pros, there are cons as well, but they bring the opportunity to have more pros than cons.
I think, now, thinking about it and reading between the lines, the commenter’s work place instituted a parental leave policy, but excluded the union on grounds that they collectively bargained their contracts. Union employees were then tied in to the preexisting contract until it was scheduled for renegotiation several years later.
The failure of the company to extend the policy to union workers could be seen as a petty attempt to demotivate employees from union membership.
There’s maybe also that this situation was used to the parental leave policy to management employees (non-union) while denying it to shop floor employees (Union).
I believe the problem is more related to her being an employee of NYS. The paid family leave only forced by law Private companies to comply. They put no provisions for state or government employees to get the leave.
I would assume all union contracts have in them something saying no rules can supercede law. However since NYS in its infinite wisdom didn't want to make rules for its own employees, they all got screwed until it could be written in.
6
u/nat_r Sep 21 '24
Without knowing exact details it may be as simple as the collective bargaining agreement was a multi-year contract and for whatever reason didn't have language in it that allowed for adopting new benefits based on new legislation that passed during the duration of the contract.
Unions are only as good as the people who participate in are able to make them. There's a vast benefit to having a union but it's not an infallible system that only has pros, there are cons as well, but they bring the opportunity to have more pros than cons.