The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #18151   Message #1167374
Posted By: EBarnacle
21-Apr-04 - 07:13 PM
Thread Name: Union Songs for Modern Singers
Subject: Lyr Add: THE COMPANY UNION
In my younger days, I was working in a plastics factory which was organizing. The company said they wanted the teamsters, we wanted Steel Workers. Here's the song:

The Company Union
Melody: Betsy from Pike, Speak the last line of each verse.

One summer I work-ed in a plastics plant;
This is a true tale, so I'll not rave or rant.
We wanted a union, the comp'ny said "Fine,
You can have any union, so long as it's mine."

We wanted Steel Workers as our own voice,
The comp'ny said Teamsters and no other choice.
They sent round recruiters, two big and none small
Who said "You'll choose the Teamsters or no one at all."

We all chose the teamsters as we were told.
They got us no raise, just out in the cold.
We paid in our dues and went without shoes;
We would have done better to keep our mouths shut.

The other inspiration for the song was that Pete Seeger in "The incomplete Folksinger" said that he had never heard a good anti-union song. When he heard this one, he laughed with me.