Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2018/05/02/bus-drivers-in-japan-go-on-str.html
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Wow, everybody still gets where they are going… that’s great.
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The problem with this tactic is that it isn’t available everywhere. There are a number of countries where the law says following this tactic, whatever the circumstances, is a dereliction of duty and ground for immediate dismissal.
Quite frankly, I’m surprised it isn’t so in Japan.
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I like this tactic, it gives the bosses less of an angle to manipulate to their advantage.
I wish the teachers had a bit of leverage such as this. Here in AZ, Gov Duchey easily and subtly is placing the family’s inconvenience of having to deal with their kids free time squarely on the shoulders of the striking teachers, easily bypassing his and his predecessor’s (Jan Brewer) defunding policy that set the stage for this situation.
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It’s quite possible they are risking dismissal by doing this. Simply firing everyone probably isn’t a good option for their employer.
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It’s very common that workers can be fired for participating in collective bargaining. Right now in the US, bus drivers are being fired for simply calling in sick in a coordinated way. There’s no recourse, at least legally speaking.
But collective bargaining is generally not about what the law actually says, because bosses have armies of lawyers to manipulate the legal bureaucracy regardless of what’s written. It’s about what you can get away with.
The more of us do something together, the more we can get away with.
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What the law and the bosses allow you to do is really not important.
Debout, les damnés de la terre!
Debout, les forçats de la faim!
The point about labor strikes is to get a critical mass of workers to participate, so that firing the majority of the work force causes enough disruptions that you can bring about a positive change for workers. Being fired is always a risk, but it is less of a risk if you manage to get a unified action by workers.
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It’s a great tactic … Except for in the many places where public transit is so heavily subsidized that the owners can wait, and wait …
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I remember one in Sydney around the turn of the millennium, Integrated public transport, IIRC, so it covered trains, tube, buses and ferries.
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Readers of the news were somewhat divided about the concept, with many wondering if it was really in the workers’ best interests.
Concern driving trollies of the finest kind!
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Perhaps: With all the money you saved in taxes, you can now hire babysitters.
It must have taken you that full 3 minutes from when you first joined BB to when you wrote this post to come up with a way to articulate such a well thought out comment. I commend you!
Welcome to Boing Boing comrade!
((ETA: if indeed your sarcasm didn’t come through your post I apologize for being an antagonist snark-monster and do welcome you to BB - open dialogue and all))
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Here is a good idea. Public transportation should be free.
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Ancheta may have forgotten a sarcasm tag.
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In the days of nationalized railways in Japan they were prohibited from striking and so the people at the ticket barrier used to stop checking tickets as a form of protest
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I definitely read that [Ancheta’s comment] as sarcasm… so if it wasn’t, whaaaa? Either way I laughed a little at it!
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Exactly, we have a huge railroad strike in France and they can’t let people ride for free. Partly because the ticket is your insurance in case of accident.
More info in French here : https://liberation.checknews.fr/question/58791/pourquoi-les-cheminots-en-greve-ne-proposent-ils-pas-aux-usagers-de-prendre-le-train-gratuitement
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