Competence
In 1891, there was a new industry that required specially skilled labor. There were no universal standards that defined those skills, no documents describing how the work should be done or who should be doing it.
The wide variety of machinery, equipment and construction techniques meant there was a variety of installation procedures and work practices, but there was no where to go for training. Each man had to learn for himself on the job, and with no standards or certification for the workers, even an experienced man had no way to document his skills. The work was often dangerous and posed health and financial risks for the workers and for their employers, but often the only guarantee either party had was a gentleman’s agreement.This may sound like the automotive service industry, but it isn’t. These were the problems faced by electricians in 1891, and they formed the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) to address them. Most unions were started to secure better wages and working conditions for their members, and this one was no exception. But they weren’t factory workers, they were tradesmen, and in the late 19th century their wages were more closely tied to the their abilities than to collective bargaining.There were no tech schools, so the IBEW established a formalized apprenticeship program based on the European trade-guild model. The apprentice works under a master, and his goal is to learn enough to become certified as a master of the trade who can seek his own jobs. The guild sets the wages for both apprentice and master, but the certification that comes with those wages guarantees the customer a certain level of knowledge and experience. So by raising the bar and requiring training and certification, the IBEW also secured a better wage for its members.Your industry needs a trade union, too; not for labor/management negotiations, but to officially declare you as a professional. Trade unions can provide members with health care and retirement plans, collective borrowing power (credit union) and most important of all, standardized training that culminates in an official certification. If you’ve read Bill Cannon’s columns in this magazine on this subject, you’ll remember that even though licenses are issued by the state, the qualification comes not from the state, but from peers in the industry. It’s other people in the trade that decide who’s qualified to do the work, not the state. An official certification would give automotive service technicians the same power that it gives electricians, plumbers, lawyers, hairdressers and anyone else who needs a license to practice their trade.You prove yourself every day that you open your toolbox, but your customer expects the cheapest possible price for your labor. Without an official license or certification, they have every right to expect it, because, in their eyes, you’re not a “professional” without one. If a customer knows you need a card in your wallet just to open your toolbox, they’ll expect to pay what you’re really worth. Even more importantly, a trade union’s certification would prove beyond a doubt to employers, attorneys, insurance companies and to your peers that other technicians think you can do the job. That means an awful lot of battles will already be won the day you get that card. And those who don’t have what it takes to get or
keep that card will fall away and stop ruining the industry for the rest of
us – technicians, shop owners and customers alike.Your industry needs a trade union.
In 1891, there was a new industry that required specially skilled labor. There were no universal standards that defined those skills, no documents describing how the work should be done or who should be doing it.
The wide variety of machinery, equipment and construction techniques meant there was a variety of installation procedures and work practices, but there was no where to go for training. Each man had to learn for himself on the job, and with no standards or certification for the workers, even an experienced man had no way to document his skills. The work was often dangerous and posed health and financial risks for the workers and for their employers, but often the only guarantee either party had was a gentleman’s agreement.This may sound like the automotive service industry, but it isn’t. These were the problems faced by electricians in 1891, and they formed the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) to address them. Most unions were started to secure better wages and working conditions for their members, and this one was no exception. But they weren’t factory workers, they were tradesmen, and in the late 19th century their wages were more closely tied to the their abilities than to collective bargaining.There were no tech schools, so the IBEW established a formalized apprenticeship program based on the European trade-guild model. The apprentice works under a master, and his goal is to learn enough to become certified as a master of the trade who can seek his own jobs. The guild sets the wages for both apprentice and master, but the certification that comes with those wages guarantees the customer a certain level of knowledge and experience. So by raising the bar and requiring training and certification, the IBEW also secured a better wage for its members.Your industry needs a trade union, too; not for labor/management negotiations, but to officially declare you as a professional. Trade unions can provide members with health care and retirement plans, collective borrowing power (credit union) and most important of all, standardized training that culminates in an official certification. If you’ve read Bill Cannon’s columns in this magazine on this subject, you’ll remember that even though licenses are issued by the state, the qualification comes not from the state, but from peers in the industry. It’s other people in the trade that decide who’s qualified to do the work, not the state. An official certification would give automotive service technicians the same power that it gives electricians, plumbers, lawyers, hairdressers and anyone else who needs a license to practice their trade.You prove yourself every day that you open your toolbox, but your customer expects the cheapest possible price for your labor. Without an official license or certification, they have every right to expect it, because, in their eyes, you’re not a “professional” without one. If a customer knows you need a card in your wallet just to open your toolbox, they’ll expect to pay what you’re really worth. Even more importantly, a trade union’s certification would prove beyond a doubt to employers, attorneys, insurance companies and to your peers that other technicians think you can do the job. That means an awful lot of battles will already be won the day you get that card. And those who don’t have what it takes to get or
keep that card will fall away and stop ruining the industry for the rest of
us – technicians, shop owners and customers alike.Your industry needs a trade union.
