Hostess Strikes May End Twinkie and Wonderbread

There is a tendency for public figures to blame the Union workers for being greedy and going on strike, particularly in Conservative circles. Hostess, makers of Twinkies and Wonder Bread, is threatening to bankrupt and liquidate if the striking union employees don't give up and go back to work. Hostess is cutting their wages to minimum and their benefits aren't benefits anymore. Kinda like what I saw at my last job, and what I'm seeing in many businesses that remain absurdly profitable for shareholders but very undesirable for workers. We are becoming a Minimum Wage country. And its going to kill the Twinkie. Say bye bye, Twinkies!

Bye bye!

My last job needed a Union. It was unhealthy work and we were paid $4/hour LESS than the competitors. People kept quitting to work for those better companies, leaving the survivors to train yet more people who would (and DID) quit. If it got a Union, the company would almost certainly shut down the site claiming: "the Union was demanding too much to be profitable." That's the knee-jerk response, and it needs close questioning and PROOF. In a publicly traded company, financial disclosure is reasonable. Trouble is, lying about that doesn't seem to land people in jail like it used to, so you won't get the truth, even behind closed doors.

Hostess is claiming the Union demands would make them unprofitable. However, the article I read did NOT interview the Union rep, which would be fair and balanced reporting. They also did not provide any financial data, just the vague claim from Hostess. There is more than one side to this and bias isn't helping anybody. Persons claiming it's a job for idiots have clearly never worked with production machinery, and don't realize that stuff is finicky and equipment I've worked with was rarely maintained at the claimed level on the paperwork. Theirs is probably the same. Keeping production equipment running is non-trivial and requires expert level knowledge, which the assembly line workers have. This means they're not stupid, and pretending they are is just the sort of insult to make them call Hostess's bluff.

Raleys supermarket chain finally resolved its Union differences last night, but neither side is happy and unhappy employees go work for someone else. I hope that isn't too common, because I like shopping there. They offer a quality product and if you comparison shop you get it for a reasonable price.

This is a REAL green business.

As for my former place of employment, if the doors close I would turn the site into a bicycle manufacturing company. Far better use of location and resources, and a much cleaner business. That town is a bicycle heaven anyway. It's flat, with vineyards, surrounded by very scenic hills with roads through them. A great place to ride no matter what your skills and fitness. Exactly the sort of place you would want that kind of factory. And the site is next door to the active railroad, where some time in the future you could be loading freight up for shipping cross country. Also, a local tourist railroad hobbyist organization wants to reactivate the old tracks from the original Transcontinental Railroad in order to run their steam train from Niles to Pleasanton right past the Senior Center where the grumpy old people said no. When that batch dies, the new old people might be less grumpy and allow it. That would be another good thing, since its further tourism and would offer a way back UP Niles Canyon after coasting down, if you happened to be too tired to return otherwise. Much more fun for the family or a date than calling a taxi. Antique trains are fun. Grandkids might visit more often if they had a train to ride, past the Senior Center. Ahem.

Where's MY jar of mayonnaise?

At this point, I think the Union workers should call Hostess's bluff and dare them to close the company forever. Hostess makes junk food for children and potheads with the munchies. It may be a piece of Americana, but it sure isn't priceless. If some philanthropist wants to buy the rights and make them again paying proper wages and charging a nostalgia price, go right ahead. Ted Turner owns most of the bison still living in America. Maybe he can be convinced to own the Twinkie too?

UPDATE: Strikers are still picketing after the 2 PM deadline, so Hostess says they're asking a Judge tomorrow to allow them to liquidate the company.

The good news is you can make your own Twinkies at home with a piping kit and a tube cutter starting from a nice yellow sponge cake. Isn't that great? Use butter cream inside and it will taste even better. As for Wonderbread? Ugh! Buy real bread, please.