Thoughts on Inequality, Stealing Tips and Healthcare

Frank Komola retired in 2012 following a 23 year career at UPS. He belongs to the retirees chapter of Local 25, International Brotherhood of Teamsters in Boston. He and his wife, Lisa, live in Haverhill.

Frank Komola retired in 2012 following a 23 year career at UPS. He belongs to the retirees chapter of Local 25, International Brotherhood of Teamsters in Boston. He and his wife, Lisa, live in Haverhill.

To understand how women must feel about wage inequality, imagine going into a coffee shop where there are two lines to place an order.

A male business owner is in one line ordering a large coffee, a woman is in the other line ordering the same thing. The cashier rings up the orders, charging the guy $3.25 and the woman $2.50. I’m guessing the guy goes ballistic when he sees this happen. But some men who would react this way run firms that have no problem paying their female employees 25 percent less than their male employees to do the same job. The 75 cents bother him, but he has no problem with the thousands of dollars he’s underpaying his female employees.

Astonishing: Stealing from Underpaid Workers’ Tips

About a year ago, I was at a coffee shop. Like a lot of places this one had a square plastic container on the counter to leave a tip. The cashier changed a $5 bill for me out of the tip container because I didn’t have any smaller bills to use. Somehow, we got into a discussion about the tips. To my astonishment, she told me how some customers, not having enough money to pay their bill, will reach into the employees’ tip money to make up the difference. And this is very common, as I discovered talking to employees at several other shops in the Merrimack Valley.

I’m thinking of starting a Go Fund Me campaign to raise enough money to install cameras to catch these people in the act. Videos on social media can be very embarrassing!

Worries Over Health Insurance

Like others I am concerned about potential changes to or elimination of the Affordable Care Act. Several benefits of concern to me include those that protect people with pre-existing conditions, and those that allow parents’ health insurance policies to continue coverage for graduating students until they turn 25. Mental health coverage has increased dramatically under the law, and even this provision could be eliminated by legislation under consideration in Washington!

Lack of coverage for pre-existing conditions could bring financial ruin to a lot of people. Eliminating the chance for parents to continue coverage for their children after graduating college would add an additional financial burden on parents and students already strapped by massive tuition loan obligations. And mental health treatment had finally been acknowledged as an important public health issue worthy of increased benefits.

I hope those of you that have been helped by these important benefits that are provided under The Affordable Care Act will contact your state and federal legislators to fight for the inclusion of these and other important benefits in any forthcoming legislation!