# Would you cross a supermarket picket line as a customer? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 20, 2013, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-cross-a-supermarket-picket-line-as-a-customer/671712 "2013-10-20T05:46:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Tanaqui](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3bc359/32.png) [@Tanaqui](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tanaqui)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2013, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-cross-a-supermarket-picket-line-as-a-customer/671712/41 "2013-10-20T18:03:33Z")
It’s interesting that most of these posts come from this at a pro/anti union standpoint. I personally do support and believe unions are a good thing, but I would still cross the line _at a supermarket_. There is exactly one supermarket within walking distance of my apartment, and I don’t have a car or a bicycle. To go to another supermarket from the same chain would require a 10-20 minute bus ride, and to go to a different chain would require either 2 bus rides or a 20 minute bus ride and a 10-20 minute walk. Hardly an option for a busy and impoverished grad student. I don’t keep a lot of food in my house, and I’m obviously not rich enough to eat out for an indeterminate length of time. So yeah, I’d cross a picket line at a grocery store, because it’s a necessity. You gotta eat. Many people, especially those who live in food deserts, don’t have much choice when it comes to grocery stores. (My neighborhood is hardly a food desert, but living in the middle of the city and being carless is still very different than living in the suburbs.) If it was something else, like a CVS and I just wanted to buy some makeup, then no, I wouldn’t. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2013, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-cross-a-supermarket-picket-line-as-a-customer/671712/42 "2013-10-20T18:13:59Z")
Since this is 2013 rather than 1973, and we’ve had more than a generation of successful top-down class war since then, the likelihood that a union’s strike _isn’t_ justified is pretty damned small. So I’m gonna honor the picket line pretty much automatically. ---
**Author:** ![Blackberry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecd19e/32.png) [@Blackberry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blackberry)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2013, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-cross-a-supermarket-picket-line-as-a-customer/671712/43 "2013-10-20T18:32:38Z")
> [@Tanaqui](#): > > There is exactly one supermarket within walking distance of my apartment, and I don’t have a car or a bicycle. To go to another supermarket from the same chain would require a 10-20 minute bus ride, and to go to a different chain would require either 2 bus rides or a 20 minute bus ride and a 10-20 minute walk. Hardly an option for a busy and impoverished grad student. I don’t keep a lot of food in my house, and I’m obviously not rich enough to eat out for an indeterminate length of time. Yeah, in that situation there’s no way I’d go somewhere else. Shit, I don’t make more money than these people and I have no benefits, so just how much time and money am I really supposed to spend on them? ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2013, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-cross-a-supermarket-picket-line-as-a-customer/671712/44 "2013-10-20T19:04:04Z")
I would cross it and I have done it before. I worked in a supermarket in high school (no union) and later in the corporate headquarters of two New England supermarket chains (partially unionized). I never had any sympathy for the unions there partly because it seemed like the people that got screwed the most by them were their newest members. _Everything_ was based on seniority from pay, benefits, to vacation schedules. The only thing they cared about was how long each member had been paying dues, not how good a job they did or if an ambitious youngster might be better qualified for the more desirable positions than someone who had just hung around for a really long time. The supermarket headquarters I worked in was constantly being picketed by some group or another for some bullshit reason. They probably thought we were cowering under our desks while they marched defiantly outside. In reality, we just got an e-mail telling us to use the back entrance for the day and we usually didn’t even know what people were protesting about or even notice that they were there at all. ---
**Author:** ![Helena330](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/helena330/32/531_2.png) [@Helena330](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Helena330)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2013, 7:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-cross-a-supermarket-picket-line-as-a-customer/671712/45 "2013-10-20T19:19:47Z")
I would cross. Unions have become elitist and corrupt. I suspect I’m in the same area as the OP (Pacific Northwest). The irony of this strike is that in my city, the only grocery store not affected is Walmart. Interesting dilemma for those not wanting to cross picket lines. ---
**Author:** ![Dallas\_Jones](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dallas_jones/32/3277_2.png) [@Dallas\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dallas_Jones)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2013, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-cross-a-supermarket-picket-line-as-a-customer/671712/46 "2013-10-20T19:28:30Z")
> [@Helena330](#): > > I would cross. Unions have become elitist and corrupt. > > I suspect I’m in the same area as the OP (Pacific Northwest). The irony of this strike is that in my city, the only grocery store not affected is Walmart. Interesting dilemma for those not wanting to cross picket lines. Unions haven’t become corrupt, they always were corrupt. They are sometimes a milder version of organized crime, sometimes they are the direct instruments, search on Jimmy Hoffa and the Teamsters. A strike is an organized shake-down of a company. Meet our demands or we will shut your business down. Knee-capping is now optional, but it is the same sort of threat. ---
**Author:** ![casdave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@casdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/casdave)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2013, 7:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-cross-a-supermarket-picket-line-as-a-customer/671712/47 "2013-10-20T19:41:40Z")
Workers do not strike and lose pay for their own personal amusement, this is always the last resort. I don’t care what the reasons are, and especially would never take any story as reported by the media, workers do not strike and lose pay for their own personal amusement. I would not cross, workers do not strike and lose pay for their personal amusement. There are no bad workers, only bad managers, workers do not strike and lose pay for their personal amusement. One day I will need others to fight for my rights and support me, workers do not strike and lose pay for their personal amusement. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2013, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-cross-a-supermarket-picket-line-as-a-customer/671712/48 "2013-10-20T19:45:55Z")
> [@casdave](#): > > There are no bad workers, only bad managers Seriously? You must not have met some of the ones I have. There are plenty of bad ones around here. They might have their reasons but that doesn’t automatically mean that they are good or justified reasons. Even if they are, it still doesn’t mean that I am going to care it about personally. If I need something from a store, I am certainly not going to inconvenience myself or my family in a fake show of sympathy because I can promise it wouldn’t be genuine. ---
**Author:** ![Sudden\_Kestrel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecd19e/32.png) [@Sudden\_Kestrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sudden_Kestrel)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2013, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-cross-a-supermarket-picket-line-as-a-customer/671712/49 "2013-10-20T19:46:08Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > That brings up a good point. To all that people who jumped in and said they wouldn’t cross the line, would you bother to find out why their picketing? This is why I specified in my answer that we wouldn’t cross a _union_ picket line, and I didn’t mean something like The Larry Johnson Grocery Employees’ Disgruntlement Corps but a recognized labor union like the SEIU, Teamsters, etc. We wouldn’t concern ourselves overmuch with the reasons for the pickets in particular. I’m sure it’s out of style to hang on to ancient concepts like honoring picket lines, but we’ll stubbornly persist in doing what we consider to be the right thing. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2013, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-cross-a-supermarket-picket-line-as-a-customer/671712/50 "2013-10-20T19:53:27Z")
Unions aren’t perfect, but there are very few circumstances under which I’d cross a picket line, and a strike for wages and benefits isn’t one of them. ---
**Author:** ![Taters](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/taters/32/2845_2.png) [@Taters](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Taters)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2013, 7:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-cross-a-supermarket-picket-line-as-a-customer/671712/51 "2013-10-20T19:56:05Z")
While there is corruption in unions, there is probably just as much at the corporations and companies. No, I don’t have a cite but I think the banking debacle is a good example. Employees shouldn’t have to sit back and take the constant cutting of their wages and benefits, while corporate profits become ever larger, and corporate executive paychecks and benefits become ever larger. I am not a union member. I don’t plan on joining my union…ever. However, there is a time and place where unions come in handy. I don’t always agree when various union organizations go on strike. I happen look at each situation and try not to just assume the worst of either side. If I didn’t have any choice but the union stores for shopping, I’d regretfully have to cross the picket line. I can’t fault anyone for that. Luckily, I have choices and transportation. In the end; there are no winners. Everyone pays in some way, shape or form, whether it’s the consumer, employee or corporation. ---
**Author:** ![OttoDaFe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ottodafe/32/356_2.png) [@OttoDaFe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OttoDaFe)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2013, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-cross-a-supermarket-picket-line-as-a-customer/671712/52 "2013-10-20T21:49:10Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > I would and did when the grocery union in southern CA went on strike ten years ago. Whether or not I agree with the union’s cause, I don’t have any obligation to them. > > Today, as an employee of an employee-owned grocery store that isn’t part of the union and is located in the region where the strike is going to happen, I would wholeheartedly like to encourage everyone to _not_ cross the picket line and come shop at our store instead. 😃 Since I already do the bulk of my grocery shopping at the chain for which **smartpi** works (though probably at a different store), the strike will not affect me significantly. To answer the question, though, I would probably avoid crossing the line if possible. My ex-stepdaughter used to work for one of the chains involved, and it seemed she was always struggling to get her hours recorded and paid correctly. (As a side note, if the strike happens I would not be a bit surprised if another of the chains used it as an excuse to pull out of the area. They’ve been closing stores piecemeal for a decade or so, and this might give them the rationale to complete the process.) ---
**Author:** ![Blackberry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ecd19e/32.png) [@Blackberry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blackberry)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2013, 10:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-cross-a-supermarket-picket-line-as-a-customer/671712/53 "2013-10-20T22:09:23Z")
> [@OttoDaFe](#): > > (As a side note, if the strike happens I would not be a bit surprised if another of the chains used it as an excuse to pull out of the area. They’ve been closing stores piecemeal for a decade or so, and this might give them the rationale to complete the process.) Which one? Albertson’s? ---
**Author:** ![OttoDaFe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ottodafe/32/356_2.png) [@OttoDaFe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OttoDaFe)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2013, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-cross-a-supermarket-picket-line-as-a-customer/671712/54 "2013-10-20T23:03:15Z")
> [@Blackberry](#): > > Which one? Albertson’s? Holed it in one. SuperValu was reducing the chain’s presence anyway, and I don’t think their dumping it on Cerberus — an investment firm, not a grocer — will slow the pace any. A strike might give Cerberus cover for pulling the plug. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2013, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-cross-a-supermarket-picket-line-as-a-customer/671712/55 "2013-10-20T23:12:14Z")
> [@casdave](#): > > Workers do not strike and lose pay for their own personal amusement, this is always the last resort. > > I don’t care what the reasons are, and especially would never take any story as reported by the media, workers do not strike and lose pay for their own personal amusement. > > I would not cross, workers do not strike and lose pay for their personal amusement. > > There are no bad workers, only bad managers, workers do not strike and lose pay for their personal amusement. > > One day I will need others to fight for my rights and support me, workers do not strike and lose pay for their personal amusement. The words of someone who has probably never had to manage anyone, or someone who has never worked for a decent manager. ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2013, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-cross-a-supermarket-picket-line-as-a-customer/671712/56 "2013-10-20T23:17:31Z")
> [@Sudden\_Kestrel](#): > > This is why I specified in my answer that we wouldn’t cross a _union_ picket line, and I didn’t mean something like The Larry Johnson Grocery Employees’ Disgruntlement Corps but a recognized labor union like the SEIU, Teamsters, etc. We wouldn’t concern ourselves overmuch with the reasons for the pickets in particular. > > I’m sure it’s out of style to hang on to ancient concepts like honoring picket lines, but we’ll stubbornly persist in doing what we consider to be the right thing. who is _we_? and why do you speak on their behalf? Also, I find you cut-off point for legitimacy rather confusing and arbitrary. Why size does a union have to be before any action they take becomes automatically legitimate and worthy of support. ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2013, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-cross-a-supermarket-picket-line-as-a-customer/671712/57 "2013-10-20T23:23:48Z")
> [@Novelty\_Bobble](#): > > Also, I find you cut-off point for legitimacy rather confusing and arbitrary. Why size does a union have to be before any action they take becomes automatically legitimate and worthy of support. I gotta agree. Who cares how established the organization is, or how many people who _don’t_ work at the place in question may be affiliated? Hell, if it’s a strictly local group that just got organized–I’m impressed! Good for them! All the more reason to support them; these are my neighbors. ---
**Author:** ![alphaboi867](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alphaboi867/32/3898_2.png) [@alphaboi867](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/alphaboi867)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2013, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-cross-a-supermarket-picket-line-as-a-customer/671712/58 "2013-10-20T23:34:51Z")
> [@WhyNot](#): > > It needs to be not offered by your employer or it needs to be greater than 9.5% of your income to get the \*subsidies \*on the exchanges. > > Better? You can still qualify for a subsidy if your employer’s plan doesn’t have an actuarial value equal to or greater than a Bronze exchange plan. > [@The\_Second\_Stone](#): > > I would never cross a picket line of union workers. Ever. They might be entirely wrong about what is going on, but they are putting their jobs on the line for what they believe in. Unions have given us good wages, child labor laws, safety laws, 8 hour workday, weekends, sick leave, benefits etc. Large corporations have given us none of those things, and move jobs overseas where they can avoid such laws. The political opponents of unions have given us trickle down economics and their contempt for people not as wealthy as themselves… Agreed, I will never cross a picket line of my own free will. ---
**Author:** ![Trinopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/2bfe46/32.png) [@Trinopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trinopus)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2013, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-cross-a-supermarket-picket-line-as-a-customer/671712/59 "2013-10-20T23:57:48Z")
I can answer from experience, from the last couple of supermarket employee strikes. No. I do not cross picket lines. ---
**Author:** ![Sudden\_Kestrel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecd19e/32.png) [@Sudden\_Kestrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sudden_Kestrel)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2013, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-cross-a-supermarket-picket-line-as-a-customer/671712/60 "2013-10-21T00:51:46Z")
> [@Novelty\_Bobble](#): > > who is _we_? and why do you speak on their behalf? Also, I find you cut-off point for legitimacy rather confusing and arbitrary. Why size does a union have to be before any action they take becomes automatically legitimate and worthy of support. “We” is my husband and me. As I mentioned in my original post, he has benefited from union involvement during his career. I spoke on his behalf as well as my own because that’s what long-married people sometimes do when they hold identical views on a subject. As far as this “cut-off point for legitimacy” you mention, I think your confusion is self-inflicted. There isn’t anything arbitrary about using the existence of an actual union as the criterion for choosing whether to cross a picket line. _If a union that we recognize represents the striking workers, we will not cross the picket line._ How is that unclear? You will note that there is nothing in that statement that says the union must be of any particular age, size, creed, or sexual orientation. It must, however, exist _as a union_ and not just as a loosely organized cluster of unhappy humanoids. If that doesn’t work for you, feel free to cross/not cross picket lines based on whatever criteria turn your particular crank. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-cross-a-supermarket-picket-line-as-a-customer/671712.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-cross-a-supermarket-picket-line-as-a-customer/671712.md?page=4)