To be absolutely clear, I'm still very pro union but I still think I have to share this experience.
I live in Germany, we have a union representation right in the company. (Betriebsrat for all the Germans) and I worked as a security guard.
I had my training in a 250-person-company … and during this time, I was voted from all the trainees to be their representative. It was a great time. I had the respect from my colleagues and it was all fine. But after 2 years, I finished my training and was a regular worker and was no longer the representative for the trainees. But luckily the timing was right and we had to vote a new union representation. I was voted in with another 8 people. There, the trouble begins. As usual, the loudest one took advantage and he started to get voted for chairman, and leading figure of the economy and roster committee. So 3 offices on one person. I voted against this, because I hated the idea of that one person getting all the power. I lost this voting 8 to 1. Right after this, every time I wanted to look through some paper work or go to our office, another member of the group was instructed to join and watch me. Every task I got from them was explicitly observed and controlled … and the employer had me on his “hit list” for being in this representation. I lost my motivation to work for the representation and sadly, my mother got cancer. I told this to my employer and my colleagues. I had to commute 5 km with an 13€ per hour for an 8 hour shift… but just a week after I have told my employer about my situation, he shifted me to an new post … 60 km , 10€ per hour and 12 hours …. My psychiatrist put me on sick leave straight away right after this … on the same week, he diagnosed me with high blood pressure .. and I was only 24 years old at this time.
For almost 1 1/2 years, nothing came from the employer and the union representation … they even had a new vote and voted me out. My mother passed away and it broke me. I took care of my mother with my younger sister and in 2017 I lost my father … so it was just me and my sister who took care for my mother. Last week, I visited my employer to give back my working clothes. My HR chef looked at me and escaped to the toilet. My work time manager saw me and immediately broke eye contact. Only the chairman from the union representation was available but what he said …. fuck … I gave him my uniform back and he was just asking “Hey, you got a new car?” … And I was like “No, I had to sell my car for the funeral, this is our family car” … and he, without hesitation “Oh, of your mother?” I just nodded and without wasting a second he told me “Okay, but did you know, I'm sueing the company for something?” … I stopped listening … I was fueled with anger after this …. 'Oh, your mother died? What about my lawsuit?' I'm pretty happy to leave the company and take some unemployment benefit to look for some new jobs. But my old employer thinks it's funny to write wrong numbers to the employment office … and get asked for new numbers … just to delay my unemployment benefits ….
Sorry for this rant … but I had to get this out of my system.