On June 1955, I went to work for mobile home builder. At this place, I was frame welder for about 7 years before I was fired. I saw that the company was getting richer and we workers were getting poorer. I then decided to get a union into the shop.

When the owner found this out he had me fired. The reason for being fired was leaving my place of work frequently. Well the reason I had to leave my place of work was to get welding rods, as they were in the crib, which was on the opposite end of the shop. I fought the company for about 13 weeks before I was justified in winning my case at the N.R.L.B. The union had a lawyer for me and N.R.L.B. had one also. I was given the back pay for 13 weeks and allowed to be hired back into this company. I refused, because I knew this owner to be vicious and he would later down the road fire me for some other reason and make it stick. After being fired I went looking for a job but each place that I went for an interview I was not hired after they saw on the application why I left my last job. On my poor little Falcon Auto I put 2000 miles looking desperately for a job. I had two kids in diapers and very little in savings. Fortunately, I went to Pontiac Motors and was hired. There I worked for 35 and a half years and retired as journeyman floor in machine repair. I was union supporter, am a union supporter, and always will be union supporter. To show you why I feel good about being backed by a union when it comes to employment, I was hired in the trailer factory at $1.50 per hour and 7 years later I was making $2.00 per hour. When I was hired at Pontiac Motors, I started out at $2.19 per hour and when I retired 35 and a half years later, I was making about $23.00 per hour. This is something. I was proud to admit to being a union member all of those years for at least at work I was treated with dignity and respect!

Retired Fellow Member of the UAW Local #653 Pontiac Michigan

Jerome Kowalski