Word: crocketts
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...spare time, Crockett attends all second-and third-step grievance hearings, meets with the union's executive board regularly, keeps in touch with fellow workers, talks to University officials to improve communication, and tries to lead a decent family life. He estimates he has saved the jobs of ten to 12 Buildings and Grounds workers since he took office in February 1979. He has also presided over the largest raise ever given his union by Harvard. Recently, he came under fire from the union's governing board, which took him to court in an unsuccessful effort to get a restraining...
...Crockett admits the union is mad at him because he "blew our case" in an unfair labor practice suit filed by HUERA with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) this summer. But he also couches his "mistake" in different terms. "I am being condemned for telling the truth...
...Then Crockett, as HUERA president, entered the picture. He attended the grievance hearings and agreed with the University that the two union officials in fact needed permission, which Harvard proved they didn't receive. Rather than take the case to arbitration, the union decided to file an unfair labor practice suit with the NLRB. Crockett unwittingly signed the unfair labor practice suit, without being informed by the union's lawyer of the nature of the document. He returned from his summer vacation, received a call from the manager of custodial services, and unwittingly signed an affadavit supporting the University...
...union's executive board reacted vehemently--how could HUERA expect to win a case with the NLRB if the union's president supported Harvard's position? The governing board demanded his resignation, and Crockett says he told the governing board, "I'll resign if you want me to." He never signed a paper declaring he had resigned, but later changed his mind. HUERA filed suit in an effort to get an injunction barring him from conducting union business. Crockett defended himself, and the suit was thrown out of court...
...Crockett's Catch-22 exemplifies the squeeze most union executives must feel during their tenure. The University, of course, stands to gain from a divided union, because it reduces the union's leverage. The administration also stands to gain from refusing to deal with any union member who will fight the University at the smallest opportunity. For Charlie Crockett, the question was poignant: should he lie for the union or tell the truth for the University? For him, the answer was never in doubt...