Does everybody in a particular labor union have to strike when others do?

[smahala1991]

Like with the SAG-AFTRA and the UAW strikes going on right now. Why does it seem like individual union members get shunned or villified if they decide to keep working instead of striking? Shouldn't it still be up to individuals in the union to decide if they still continue to work or strike?

[CupcakeTheDestroyer]

If this is in reference to the Drew Barrymore thing, she’s knowingly doing so in direct contradiction with the demands of the WGA-SAG-AFTRA strike. She is very much being a scab for her own personal benefit and hiring scabs, knowing this will benefit only her and whomever she decides to give a paycheck that’s less than that crew deserves. It is an unbelievably disrespectful move on her part, basically spitting in the face of all the other actors and writers as if they’re somehow beneath her, this former a-list celebrity who’s been able to make plenty of money that these people are begging for. It’s class warfare at it’s most basic.

[RainbowMarinade]

An employee can very well cross the picket line of their co-workers and show up for work. They do have that choice. However, don’t be surprised when those co- workers get pissed off. They sacrificed their paycheck to fight for a better deal, while you reap the benefit of their sacrifice and still collect a paycheck the whole time.
It’s quite understandable.

[AviatorTom]

When you belong to a labor union, you give up certain rights in order to get other rights, like the ability to collective bargain. Yes, an individual can cross a pocket line and continue to work, but they would be disenfranchised from the union, and once the strike us over, they would be out of a job.

[Astarlessnightsky]

unions are only as strong as they stand together. When certain people break the strike, its like a stab in the back

[KostasKouvalis]

I don't think so, because one semester there was a teachers strike in my university, but many professors chose not to participate.

[msc545]

This is a very good way to lose friends. Nobody who belongs to a union should ever cross a picket line and in fact nobody in general should ever cross a picket line. They are there for a reason.

[CaptainSmartass]

I've crossed a picket line before, but then again, I'm not in a union.