The law takes a step that is completely unique: it prohibits employers from asking prospective hires about their salary histories until after they make a job offer that includes compensation, unless the applicants voluntarily disclose the information. No other state has such a ban in place.
[...] The new law also bans salary secrecy, blocking employers from keeping their employees from talking about pay with each other. About half of all employees say they are either prohibited or discouraged from discussing compensation, even though they have a legal right to do so.
http://boston.cbslocal.com/2016/08/01/massachusetts-equal-pay-comparable-work-baker-bill/
http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2016/08/01/3803836/massachusetts-equal-pay/
(Score: 4, Informative) by deimtee on Wednesday August 03 2016, @02:17PM
.
Just addressing this point, there is an obvious selection bias here. Those that negotiate individually like that are usually special snowflakes with extreme skills. Replaceable cogs in the office/production machinery have much less clout in the negotiations, unless they do it collectively.
Personally, I am in favour of unions because they raise the general (working class) standard of living, and that is good for everyone. (well, in Oz and Britain they do, apparently USA unions are just corrupt arseholes.)
If you cough while drinking cheap red wine it really cleans out your sinuses.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by SDRefugee on Wednesday August 03 2016, @03:10PM
....USA unions are just corrupt arseholes
The funding arm of the US democratic nee socialist party.... I've been "represented" by a US union back in 80s, where the only benefit I ever recieved from them was to be incessantly pestered to vote (D) in all elections... My wife got the same treatment from SEIU as a registered nurse during the the 2008 presidential election, where we were visited by union reps err thugs, and had it suggested that we both vote
for Obama in the upcoming election. I told them I'd vote for him when pigs fly, which kinda riled them and I wound up having to threaten to call the police when they wouldn't leave.. Later, wife gets abruptly transfered to night shift, when she had a signed agreement with management to only work days.. Needless to say I DETEST unions...
America should be proud of Edward Snowden, the hero, whether they know it or not..
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Capt. Obvious on Wednesday August 03 2016, @08:37PM
I call BS on that being the "only benefit". It may be all you noticed, but your salary was almost certainly higher because that union had been around historically. Benefits too. The problem unions hav is that over time workers become acclimated to what they have, and start opposing a union because ti doesn't keep delivering bigger and bigger wins. But, without the union historically, they wouldn't be where they are now, and without the union in the future, they'll probably revert twoards that old version.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Thursday August 04 2016, @02:23AM
I had one experience with unions, also in the '80's. My first job after leaving the Navy was union. The business was family owned for three or four generations, and related to "The Mob". Fact was, one family member had been indicted for his Mafia connections, but not convicted.
Anyway, the company president and the union president were cousins. They "negotiated" contracts at Grandma's house, sitting poolside.
The more I learned about the workings of the company and the union, the more I detested them both. The only thing the company was good for, was experience. They weren't especially choosy about who they hired, and I needed some experience.
(Score: 2) by el_oscuro on Thursday August 04 2016, @02:39AM
Here across the pond, my wife works a union job, and I can in fact confirm that they are "corrupt arseholes". Unless you are a baseball player or a government employee, unions here aren't worth shit.
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