[consulting] Unionizing Drupal

Sat Aug 7 21:03:43 UTC 2010

This has been raised on this list before (
http://lists.drupal.org/pipermail/consulting/2009-August/003635.html) but I
really think a guild is a much better idea for those that would be
interested in organizing skilled Drupal talent,,,,

--
Alex Urevick-Ackelsberg
Partner | Business Lead
Zivtech, LLC
http://zivtech.com
alex at zivtech.com
office: (267) 940-7737
cell: (215) 866-8956

On Sat, Aug 7, 2010 at 4:53 PM, Sam Tresler <sam at treslerdesigns.com> wrote:

> Hi!
>
>   This is a mish-mash of all kinds of thoughts I've had reading this
> thread.  The few recent posts have led me to contribute, despite, not having
> a fully formed an opinion for or against yet, because...
>
>   Before delving into Drupal I was a Theatrical Technician for 7 years.  I
> do think this analogy applies.  Technical Theatre, much like many websites
> is almost entirely contract based work. By that I mean, that by and large
> the majority of the work consists of companies or individuals that have a
> product (cabaret or website?) that they do not have the expertise to produce
> themselves.  Consequently, they need to engage a third party to help make
> their vision a reality, but in both cases there are 2 phases, initial
> production, and maintenance thereafter.
>
>   This in itself is a quandary to the hiring party.  In theatre, it has
> turned into an almost completely 'who you know' system.  7 years, and I
> *never* got a job from my resume.  I fact, I went so far as to turn my
> resume into a references list, where I listed the show, the venue, and a
> contact person, that was essentially name dropping.  We've all had similar
> situations in web development?  How does someone who is completely
> unqualified in the expertise they need going to decide who to hire?
>  Generally, references are the best bet, and barring that you look at the
> product they created (see the credits list in any program for theatre).
>  More on this in a moment.
>
>   Contrary to what people seem to think, MOST of downtown NYC theatre is
> made by people that have nothing to do with IATSE because they have,
> alternately out-priced themselves as a union, failed to offer enough
> incentive to join, or were to restrictive upon joining.
>
>   My issues with IATSE that I also see as being potential pitfalls for a
> web development union:
>
>     Cost: When I was in that industry, it was $2400 initiation dues to get
> in.  This was to take the test, and may have changed since (this was before
> USA merged with IATSE).
>
>     Specialization: I was a sound designer/stage
> manager/electrician/technical director and have the credit list to back up
> all of those, but as far as IATSE was concerned I had to pay a dues for each
> one if I wanted to conduct business in it, because I member (at that time)
> could only have on major and one minor specialization allowed. How many
> people out there are just developers, just themers, graphic designers who
> know how to design for Drupal, etc?
>
>     Seniority:  This is huge to me.  I worked as a $25/hr carpenter along
> side an IATSE $500/day carpenter.  He had more seniority than I, despite the
> fact that my production was twice his.  If I work harder, and better, I
> think that should be accounted for at the end of the day.  Particularly
> where technology is concerned where frequently staying on top of cutting
> edge techniques is equal if not More important than having done it since
> there were Apple IIe's.
>
>     Quality Control: IATSE has tests.  I knew people personally who failed
> the test and still 'passed' because there father/brother-in-law/cousin was
> in the IATSE.  I point this out, only in that A) there has been talk of
> certification, and B) I see no way for a union to maintain credibility while
> endorsing crappy devs, and no other way to ensure good development without
> some form of QA, if you will.  This I could see some major benefit in,  to
> my point above regarding the hiring and reference process.
>
>     If it isn't obvious by now, IATSE at the time wasn't worth my dues, for
> these reasons and several more.  However, these things I have pointed out
> are things any potential guild or union will need to consider.
>
>     Finally,
>        "Especially, if you could control the pool of experts."
>
>    What do you mean by this?  This sentence set off about a dozen red flags
> in my mind...
>
>   Sorry there isn't a 'point' to this post, just wanted to inform some of
> the discussion based on personal experience with a similar union.
>
>   Cheers,
>     Sam
>
>
>
> On Sat, 7 Aug 2010, Sami Khan wrote:
>
> >> They use a set of standard contracts which take into
> >> account different skills and the difference in cost of living and
> >> labor in different regions, but those base contracts are negotiated
> >> as a union so when an individual contractor lands a gig, they work
> >> within the pay range and skillset defined in the larger contract.
> >
> > I think this would be highly unacceptable for many developers here.
> > However, it would definitely solve the age problem. Especially, if you
> > could control the pool of experts.
> >
> > Sami
> >
> >>
> >> I'm still not sure if our industry is organizable, but if it is it
> >> would be under a similar model.
> >>
> >> --Eric
> > _______________________________________________
> > consulting mailing list
> > consulting at drupal.org
> > http://lists.drupal.org/mailman/listinfo/consulting
> >
>
> Sam Tresler
> 646-246-8403
>
> _______________________________________________
> consulting mailing list
> consulting at drupal.org
> http://lists.drupal.org/mailman/listinfo/consulting
>
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://lists.drupal.org/pipermail/consulting/attachments/20100807/c384bbd7/attachment.html 