Labor Day

So what do you learn growing up as the kid of a labor negotiator about Labor Day? I don't know about my sibs, but I learned all about unions, ways to negotiate with people and how to handle folks who are upset when their financial survival is threatened. My dad dealt with all of this - and more- in his job at a major food corporation as a labor negotiator.

Most of the time it meant he traveled, but there were times when his work came all to close to home. There was the time we were watching TV in our living room and irate workers threw a brick through the picture window. None of us were injured although we were frightened by it. And the first thing my father did after we got over our initial hysteria was to explain to us what was going on. He told us what was at stake for the union people then he calmly got on the phone - in front of us - made one call and said "You frightened my kids. This kind of thing isn't necessary." Then he hung up the phone and privately said it was his fault it happened because, at a meeting, he failed to negotiate properly.

It struck me at the time that he never called the police. We simply swept up the glass shards and continued to watch TV. And when I asked him why he didn't call them, he simply replied "We've worked things out. It won't happen again."

There were a few other incidents like that - nothing as dramatic - but it taught me the value of having a structure to negotiate rather than bedlam. Whether someone is pro-union or not, their existence has dramatically affected the course of labor conditions in our country - for the good. That conclusion might surprise some, but I was never taught that the workers asking for better pay and conditions were wrong by the things my father said and did. What I learned was that they were trying to equal the playiing field at times so they could get what they needed to take care of their families. We weren't wealthy ourselves so I understood that.

It also taught me the value of communicating effectively. I suppose that's why one of my majors in college was Communications. I saw firsthand how powerful a skill negotiating could be - and what happened when you failed to take into account how high peoples' emotions are running.

These are lessons that I use at my work every day of the year.