On the Picket

The picket line’s a lonely place With just two of you there Fighting for a membership That doesn’t seem to care. Two members turned back; Just two, no more. Most of them slipped quietly in Through the hidden back door, And quietly slipped out again And we saw them driving by Funny how none of them seemed Able to look us in the eye. We stood there with our picket boards, Were snapped by the local press, But we lost that action , The carnage not made any less For the lack of any backbone Must have made the management laugh And very shortly afterwards they started The decimation of the staff. I had to swallow my pride, For ironically at the end I helped negotiate leaving terms For most of my blackleg friends. And in case any wonder Just to let you know I was one of the first The company decided to let go. Less than two years later, Lacking any Union voice, The rump that was left was Given the stark choice: Self employed status Or clear your desks and go. Not being vidicrtive I resisted The urge to say I told you so The picket line’s a lonely place With only two of you there Fighting for a membership That just doesn’t seem to care