My one or two readers who read this may remember the “Exterminators” who have been at the Mayo Hotel for sometime now trying to chant the rats out of the building. “Get the rats out, get the rats out, get the rats out” is their basic line. It doesn’t seem to be working because they are still there.<\/p>\n
Well things have been happening. First on March 21st the Tulsa World ran an article on the exterminators. It turns out that the chanters are not exterminators. They are homeless people hired by a local carpenter’s union hired to picket jobs run by Green Country Interiors, a Tulsa based contracter. Its kind of funny because the picketers are hired by the union and paid $10 per hour and no benefits in order to protest the Union because they are paying only $14 to $18 per hour plus benefits.<\/p>\n
What is not funny is that the union has put signs up at the Green Country’s owner’s subdivision saying shame on him by name. That seems a little over the line to me.<\/p>\n
The union says that there are no carpenters on the picket line becaus they are all working!<\/p>\n
It seems ironic to me that unions have learned modern labor management methods. Hiring temporary workers at low wages, not paying them benefits, etc. I’m not saying they are doing anything illegal, immoral, or unethical. I’m just saying that its ironic. I will say that $10 per hour for picketing does not seem like a bad deal for the picketers. All kidding aside, walking in circles chanting at the top of my lungs for three or four hours is hard work.<\/p>\n
Now Wednesday we had something new. Counterpicketers. I have no idea who they are or who they represent but in addition to the exterminators we had a couple guys with big old plastic buckets and sticks using them very effectively as drums trying to disrupt the chanting. It was hilarious. Three police cars were there with the officers monitoring the action.<\/p>\n
I apologize for the poor quality of the video.<\/p>\n