#hiring halls

[racefortheironthrone]

I was rereading some of your old union questions and I was wondering if there was some reason why hiring halls wasn't more common.

So I discuss hiring halls a bit here, but just to explain to new readers, a hiring hall is a particular mode of labor relations whereby the union takes over the power to hire and fire workers from management while agreeing to provide workers to a given job site upon request from a business that has a contract with the union. One way to think of it is that the union has essentially put the HR department under worker control.

The union then undertakes to match requests for a certain number of workers to the same number of union members (in the case of a closed shop) or dues-paying workers (in the case of an agency shop) who have applied to the hiring hall for work. In order to prevent corruption and favoritism, the union assigns or refers workers on the basis of some non-discriminatory rule. To quote from IATSE (the theater worker's union) Local #18's rules for referrals:

"Referrals are to be based upon such recognized factors as ability to perform specific services requested by said Employer, availability for employment at the time of such request, and seniority as defined by the length of service in the industry or for a specific employer."

Finally, the hiring hall also undertakes a responsibility that the labor that it's providing to employers is of high quality. At a minimum, this involves keeping detailed records on union members' "good conduct" on the job site. Most hiring halls tend to require, in addition to union membership and/or dues, that a worker has completed an apprenticeship or other form of licensing or certification process in a trade, and has a minimum amount of experience as a trainee. Finally, some hiring halls even attempted to regulate personal behavior standards when it came to alcohol, on the grounds that workers who are habitual alcoholics are likely to drink on the job, which compromises the quality of their labor.

Hiring halls tend to be confined to a fairly narrow set of industries - you see them in construction, longshoring and warehousing, maritime, theater, agriculture. So why aren't they more common?

Well, one major factor is that employers tend to be highly resistant to allowing unions to take over something that they consider to be a core role of management - and thus it's kind of the last thing they'd agree to in a union contract. Thus, the relative balance of power between labor and capital becomes pivotal: where employers are strong and unions are weak, you don't see hiring halls; but where employers are weak and unions are strong, you're more likely to see hiring halls.

Another factor is labor law - the hiring hall tended to be associated with closed shops, and a lot of countries ban closed shops. (The Taft-Hartley Act of 1947 banned the closed shop but left hiring halls alone, so hiring halls had to shift to agency shops.) Moreover, historically the NLRB has been rather suspicious of hiring halls, in part because the NRLB had pioneered the model of union shops associated with the then-new CIO unions and wanted to steer unions towards that model rather than the hiring hall, which was associated with older craft unions. As a result, NRLB bureaucrats tended to discourage the formation of hiring halls when they made labor law decisions or conducted arbitration and mediation during collective bargaining.

A third factor is the union's capacity - as you can see from above, operating a hiring hall takes a lot of work (and financial resources to pay for that work). A lot of unions find that degree of extra effort to be more than they're willing or able to muster. The United Farm Workers, for example (and this is a topic that I'd welcome further asks about, because it's a fascinating story of the rise and fall of a social movement), ran into a good deal of difficulty trying to set up a system of hiring halls in the wake of their first breakthrough victory in the grape-growing industry in California in 1970.

As detailed in the excellent history From the Jaws of Victory by Matthew Garcia, Cesar Chavez was more interested in the UFW as a social movement than in doing the work to ensure that contracts were signed in a timely fashion, that hiring halls (which had to be set up on far-flung farms all over the state of California) were operational in time to handle the seasonal hiring rush in the fields, that they were adequately staffed by competent people (Cesar Chavez had a rooted ideological objection to paying union staffers more than a poverty wage), that they kept adequate records and matched workers to referrals efficiently, and that they were operating in a non-discriminatory and efficient manner. As a result, a lot of UFW hiring halls developed a reputation for being shady or slow and inefficient or favoring Mexican workers over Filipinos - which became something of a hindrance in maintaining existing membership and organizing new workers.

[tallyballing]

Screenshots of Bora looking so babygirl (from emmatronics' stream)

I hope someone got actual photos of these he looked so silly and did so many poses

[brawngp2009]

devour me

[recmroom]

Photoshoot of German actor Damian Hardung, photographed by sercan.sevindik (1)

[strawberrybyers]

marvel drives me crazy with hiring some of the same actors to play different characters but i love rdj so much that i’ll let him playing dr. doom slide.

i kind of get why he was chosen as dr.doom as dr. doom takes on the identity of iron man for a period of time, but like dr. doom isn’t tony stark. i mean idk how they’ll play it out in the mcu and i know they like all the alternate universe stuff so maybe they may play a “tony stark becomes dr. doom in another reality” card. but what would’ve been better than all of this is if they just didn’t fucking kill tony stark to begin with!!

[polysyndetonaddictsupportgroup]

holy fuck, this gives the zenin so much more lore than what we got in the manga. like the potential is right there to have this great inter-clan generational dispute and cold war but gege just breezes past it and then gets rid of it completely.

with all this cool new shut we’re getting about them, im almost glad that megumi was born a boy. like could you imagine just how much worse the zenin would have been to him if he was a girl? they already have the whole misogyny thing going for them and then their version of jesus pops up and it turns out that it’s a girl who wields their prized technique?

god, i can’t imagine just how much more controlling they would be towards megs, although im still not sure if the whole training until ur bones fall off would still happen. i feel like naoya would be different towards megs but we also know that the zenin are totally okay with incest so i hate where that would go.

It would have been bad.

See, I think the entire training until your bones fall off thing would still happen, but there would be an added layer of cruelty towards it. Because megumi was a little boy who was being trained in a way that even adults couldn’t have handled, so of course he spent a lot of time getting hit and a lot of time crumpling under the pressure and exhaustion. There are very, very few instances where he remembers actually leaving the training room on his own two feet. He usually was pushed until he collapsed and woke up later in the room they kept for him. But if he was a little girl in the same circumstances? They’d make every “failing” about her sex. They’d blame her being a girl for it and constantly use it as a source of sneering superiority.

It would also be bad because she would very much be seen as a source of descendants. Boy Megumi wouldn’t necessarily be exempt from that, but it would happen sooner for girl Megumi.

Bloodline is very important to the Zenin. Inheriting power, techniques—they want to continue the flow of power through the generations. And most of the Zenin clan (and the wider jujutsu world) believe that Megumi is the most powerful Zenin alive right now, if not Gojo’s equal, and the only reason why hes being graded as a Grade Two sorcerer is because gojo’s purposefully sabotaging his development. Like. Mindset is a huge amount of jujutsu ability. Yuuta went from getting beaten up by normal high schoolers to having some combat ability but needing inumaki to handle a semi grade one to being the second most powerful person alive in the span of a few months. He absolutely blitzed the previous second most powerful person alive when he would have lost that same fight a few hours previous. There’s a lot of people convinced Megumi’s on Gojo’s level but he’s been keeping him on a leash since childhood. But the powers still there in his blood.

That’s power the Zenin want to pass on, regardless of gender. But as a boy, Megumi’s got a little bit more leeway—men are accepted as warriors first in the clan, and age won’t affect his ability to procreate. If megumi was a girl? She’s got that goddamn biological clock ticking down. As the ten shadows, I think the Zenin would still expect her as a warrior, but they’d also have a fucking quota she needs to fill before the clock hits zero. And they’d have some very proprietary concerns about making sure no one outside of the clan has a chance to become involved with her. They’d want her to stay within the clan with her partners. And they’d be absolutely creepy and weird about how they went about it. It’s a little bit of a mercy that Megumi’s a boy.

[24trinitydrive]

[jaggedwolf]

new dragon age setting fear: getting outed by the fade

[adelaidedrubman]

also i think i am having a bad allergic reaction to the mold in my office. there’s mold in my office btw

[zahroreadsthings]

Last sample...

Check notes for previous instalments

You start setting the water eaters down for the witch when they're full. Once you finish working your way across he cliffs on either side of town you both stop and stretch.

'Have you decided when you want to collect?' she asks you.

'After you pour.'

'I want a moment before we start.' She closes her eyes and massages her fingers through her gloves. 'We're going to start here and work our way down the line of water eaters. I'll dispose of the water by squeezing it into the sea and the safest place to do that is at the platform, so once we pass one bring it there.'

You take another step back from the crumbling edge of the cliff. 'You didn't get a request from the council to do this.'

'No. They'd want me to do it anyway and it's easier to do before the pressure headaches come.' She stops rubbing her fingers and flexes her hands. 'It's almost time to collect your samples. Place the bottle underneath when I pour.'

She takes the case of vials out of the bag and pulls one out. You see now the inside of the bottle is frosted white.

'I've collected all of my samples from the products of yours. Is that what you normally do? What happens when you run out?'

'It's not the only way to collect samples. What you're collecting will set your sensitivity range so you're doing it in a more controlled environment. In your regular work you can swing a bottle around on a cold morning and have a perfectly adequate sample.'

She tips the vial out at about shoulder height. You flick a bottle underneath it and flinch back at the cold. She sighs, takes the stopper from your other hand, and stops the bottle herself. 'Wear gloves if it's too cold.'

You pocket the bottle and pull gloves on while the witch flaps her hands around in the air. 'Water eater,' she says.

You run over to the platform with it, set it a safe distance from the edge, then run back to the next water eater.

You repeat the process across the cliffs. When all of the air is released you both make your way over to the platform. Still wearing gloves, the witch squeezes the water eaters over the railing. Water gushes out until all that remains are the dark blue beads, which she puts back in the pouch.

'We'll need to keep an eye out over the next day. Once the rain starts we can do your ritual.'

'Do we do it anywhere special?'

'Just don't get anything on my carpets.'

[racefortheironthrone]

So to follow-up on @theoutcastrogue, who's on the money about Thieves' Guilds...let's talk about some Weird Fantasy Guilds.

Beggars' Guilds in Discworld, Wheel of Time, etc. owe a lot to both the Gaibang of wuxia and the Beggar's Opera/Threepenny Opera...which ironically ties back to the Thieves' Guild in that Jonathan Wild was something of a target of satire for the Beggar's Opera. They also owe more than a bit to London Labour and the London Poor by Victorian journalist Henry Mayhew.

Adventurer's Guilds are a particular favorite of mine, ever since my time playing Quest for Glory as a kid. They strike me as one of the more logical extensions of trade unionism in a fantasy context, usually acting as a hiring hall where quest-givers can post their jobs on a bulletin board as well as providing training facilities, specialized equipment stores, and some form of health care and disability protections in a very dangerous profession. There was a historical Knight's Guild in Anglo-Saxon London, but not much is known about their activities outside of charity work that could equally suggest that they were a religious confraternity rather than a labor organization of knights.

Assassin's Guilds are a weird mix of the historic Murder Inc. and the myths about the Hashshashin, but as is often the case, I think Terry Pratchett did them best as a satire of British boarding school fiction, combined with an interesting industrial analysis that their primary function is to reduce the murder rate by raising prices.

I don't actually know whether the Guild of Seamtresses counts as a weird fantasy guild, as sex worker unions have existed both historically and contemporaneously in several countries.

Is Discworld (at least the City Watch and Moist von Lipwig) urban fantasy? Also, is there any historical precedent for the Thieves’ Guild or was that particular plot point a satiric exaggeration on Pratchett’s part?

Yes, Ankh-Morpork is pretty much the textbook definition of urban fantasy.

I don’t remember if I’ve ever done stuff on weird fantasy guilds, but I probably should some day… (hint to anyone who wants to ask me about them.)

As far as I know, formal Thieves’ Guilds originate in Fritz Leiber’s Lankhmar stories, one of the early pioneers of sword-and-sorcery and became fully entrenched in the fantasy genre thanks to their incorporation into Dungeons & Dragons and the like. What Terry Pratchett did was to (lovingly) satirize Leiber’s trope through the lens of the British tradition of trade union-based humor that you can see in the works of George Macdonald Fraser and a generation of postwar writers who had grown up in an environment of hegemonic trade unions and who couldn’t see the Thatcherite writing on the wall.

[supercantaloupe]

applying for the KC internship again. it looks like the opera is not taking interns over the summer (boo) so i'm putting all my eggs in the symphony orchestra basket now lol

[petrichorvoices]

we got a job out of nowhere and 7 minutes later aced an exam. someone is looking out for us holy shit

[venusianmystique]

I just finish watching the little mermaid and it was so beautiful. It had me giggling and kicking my feet and I almost cried at the end

[drawingsphopho]

Almost 4 centuries after homunculus production was made illegal, the Living Department was granted allowance from City Hall to make a sapient homunculus.

It still hasn’t forgiven them.

[readwritealldayallnight]

Simon ‘Ghost’ Riley, who from the moment he laid eyes on you, has only ever referred to you as his wife

You, this sweet little thing, running through the halls on base one day when you turn a corner and nearly run headfirst into the Lieutenant, who’s walking alongside Soap

“Oh! Sorry about that, sir.” You told him, never slowing down in your hurried pace as you snuck around his large frame and continued down towards whatever you were evidently late for

The only reason his gaze had followed your retreating form, was that unlike everyone else, you had met his eyes when you spoke, even smiled warmly up at him

That one smile and he was done for

“Who was tha’?” The sergeant had questioned, seeing Ghost’s attention still fixated on you.

“Think that was my wife.”

“Yer what?!”

Simon ‘Ghost’ Riley, who makes it a point to let everyone know that you are in fact his wife

Well, everyone apart from you apparently

He would certainly never abuse his position as a Lieutenant, but some new recruit had the audacity to whistle at you as you walked by? Well 100 laps around the base don’t exactly run themselves

Another soldier saved you a seat next to him in a briefing? He can enjoy scrubbing toilet seats for the next week in that case

Someone actually had the bollocks to ask you for your phone number? Perfect, he needed a volunteer for demonstrating hand to hand combat to the recruits, medics on standby of course

By the time he properly introduces himself to you for the first time, it’s understood by everyone else around that you are, for all intents and purposes, Mrs Riley

Simon ‘Ghost’ Riley, who listens to you tell him your name in a voice that resembles music to his ears, hardly bothering to remember your last name, seeing as it’ll be changing soon enough anyway

“You can call me anythin’ you want, love.” His deep, gravelly voice had sent shivers down your spine, cheeky smirk widening beneath his mask. “So long as you call me, that is.”

By the end of your first date, (you were sitting alone in the dining hall and he wordlessly joined you what do you mean this isn’t a date) he’s wondering if you’ll insist on a ceremony or if he can sweep you away to the nearest courthouse and make this official, slipping a ring onto you finger and himself into you

You had laughed when he put his number into your phone and named himself ‘Husband’, certain that the man was only messing with you, some kind of hazing that you apparently weren’t aware Lieutenants played on the new communications hire, but it was only fair seeing as he’d saved your contact under ‘Wife’

Simon ‘Ghost’ Riley, who is over the moon every time you play along, even if he knows you believe you’re only playing

“Ach, thanks Lt. Just what I needed.” Soap said, seeing Ghost’s approaching form enter the common room, holding a steaming cup of tea in each hand

“S’for my wife. Get your own.” The older man gruffly replied, sliding the mug onto the side table next to where you’re curled up on the couch, reading a book

“Aw, thank you honey.” You giggled, smiling up as him with an expression he thinks would taste even sweeter than honey if he were to run his tongue across your upturned lips

“Happy wife, happy life, sergeant.” Ghost shrugged, ignoring the other man’s pout, landing next to you and reaching an arm behind you across the back of the couch

“God, maybe I really should keep you.” You’d laughed, reaching a leg out to dig your socked toes into his muscled thigh, teasing him

Grasping your foot into his large, strong hands, he began massaging it, uncaring that you were only two of the many people in the common room, not when you looked at him like that, smiling together as though you truly were nothing more than a married couple

Simon ‘Ghost’ Riley, who surprised you one day, insisting he needed your help with something crucial off base, and drove you to a local shopping outlet to look at none other than dresses

“Is there some sort of party happening?” You’d questioned, confused out of your mind

“Suppose you could consider it a party.” He’d answered, leading you through the many racks of dresses, you noticed were all, very conveniently, white

“Now while you’re lookin’ through dress sizes,” he’d added, taking your left hand in both of his. “You know your ring size? Got my own shoppin’ to do ‘round here.”

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