If they are smart, your employer will argue you are a supervisor if you are pro-union because it would remove a against their own interest. Any semi-competent employer will attempt to fool around with the composition of bargaining units to influence things in their favor.

If the union thinks this is an unwinnable fight they will tell you, but also if they aren't total fuck ups, suggest a path forward for the job in general.

Always, labor law is merely a concession granted to workers to diminish our power. The apparent miasma of class interests where many are kinda a manager/super is a strategy to confuse us out of standing with one another. And look, it works. If you think a union will benefit everyone, then go forward until you are definitively stopped by an external force.

People would need to know what juristictiom you're under to answer questions about legality. In Australia managers can join unions without issue, although may need to recuse themselves from certain discussions due to contracts creating conflicts of interest.

edit: You should always be honest about potential conflicts of interest and what you would do to avoid them anyway.

Well, you don’t meet the IWW definition of manager. Your position sounds more like foreman or a shop steward, but this is just vibes. I don’t know UA or other AFL/CIO unions’ definition of manager.

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what does being under your current boss gives you that splitting into coop won’t?

Supervisors cannot be in the same bargaining unit as their subordinates. I'm pretty sure you wouldn't be considered a statutory supervisor though. To meet that definition you need to somewhat regularly exercise independent judgement on behalf of the business (as in you need to make non-routine decisions about what would be in the business' best interest). Hiring, firing, disciplining, and assigning work usually make you a supervisor but if you don't do any of that it gets a bit murkier.

For instance, buying parts to do a job wouldn't be considered supervisory duties. If you could cut a check to hire a subcontractor that probably would be supervisory. Planning out work probably wouldn't be unless you're assigning people to different job sites.

Still you should bring it up when you meet with the union rep.

Someone pointed out to me that organizing from these almost-management type positions can actually be easier, because you have a lot of extra info about other people's working conditions, and their complaints w management, and can more easily guess the views of more people before anything even starts. Sounds like that might match w your experiences?

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