Rent-a-Picketer

Strikes are popular again. Lately they've been all the rage. First it was the autoworkers against GM and Chrysler, then the Writers Guild, and now D.C. carpenters. Striking is a extremely powerful tool of communication. It occurs when someone believes in something so profoundly they are willing to bring a process to a halt so their voice will be heard. The interesting twist on the D.C. carpenters’ strike is that they have hired out homeless to walk the picket lines for them.

Yes, you did read me correctly the Mid-Atlantic Regional Council of Carpenters is outsourcing strikers. For $8 an hour they hire someone else to strike for them. The math does add up. Homeless are paid $8 an hour to participate in a strike against a construction company the union feels is treating its members unfairly. The carpenters are still able to continue working their $24 an hour job, while someone else tries to spread the word.

While the math may make sense it doesn’t seem to translate into an effective communication tactic. Isn’t the point of striking the personal passion behind the action? Hiring someone else to do it for you goes against the heart of a strike. The most effective messages come from the source and have the emotion behind them. According to NPR, one striker didn’t even know why he was there. The man is quoted as saying “"We're protesting, we're protesting…" Then the energy leaves his voice and he concedes, "I don't know."” The homeless take the work for the money, not the cause. In my opinion the case seems to be the same for the carpenters, they are more interested in maintaining their jobs for the money, while the cause is better left up to someone else. If they don’t care enough about their own working conditions, why should I?