At one point in the past, one could argue that unions were a desirable thing in the manufacturing industry in order to pave the way for better working conditions and more humane hours. Can the same be said today? I read stories about union thuggery fairly often, with inflatable rats being placed outside buildings where non-union labor is being used etc. I won't even get into the absurdity of public sector unions buying elections for the people who are supposed to be their adversaries in contract negotiations...
Here's a current story that really ticked me off:
tldr: new Quaker meetinghouse was being built with non-union labor in Philadelphia and a union member cut all the structural steel with an acetylene torch and then set it on fire.
Personally, I don't see anything that distinguishes union tactics from the mafia practices of extorting protection money out of businesses. They like to justify the thuggery by talking about how well trained they are and how safely they produce a building, but if the difference were really that stark, people would happily pay the difference for a quality building. Instead, they get slowdowns and cost overruns for slightly better craftsmanship.
Does modern society benefit from the existence of unions?
Here's a current story that really ticked me off:
http://articles.philly.com/2013-01-05/n … -workers/2Four days before Christmas, the Friends' world was rocked by the sort of violence they have devoted their lives to stamping out.
Vandals with an acetylene torch crept onto the project's muddy construction site in the middle of the night. Working out of view in the meetinghouse's freshly cemented basement, they sliced off dozens of bolts securing the bare steel columns and set fire to the building crane, causing $500,000 in damage.
Police detectives deemed the attack arson because of a series of confrontational visits from union officials days before the incident. They say the torch could only have been operated by a trained professional, and believe it was almost certainly the work of disgruntled union members. The city has assigned extra investigators to the case and is working with federal forensic experts to track down the vandals, said Michael Resnick, the city's public safety commissioner.
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Through all the changes Philadelphia has undergone in the last decade - the surge in its downtown population, the blossoming of its inner-ring neighborhoods - the trade unions haven't budged on the cost issue. Cross them by hiring nonunion workers or demanding more efficient work rules, and you can expect a giant inflatable rat at your door - or worse. The Post brothers, who are renovating a former factory into apartments at 12th and Wood Streets, learned the hard way in the spring when union protesters laid siege to their construction site, blocking deliveries for five months.
The Quakers' decision to go nonunion may be a sign of a broader shift in attitudes. The group, known for its commitment to social justice, chose contractor E. Allen Reeves of Abington after conducting a blind review of bids. Reeves' price was 23 percent lower than the nearest union bidder, the group says.
It was not an easy decision, acknowledged Meg Mitchell, clerk of the meeting, the closest thing the non-hierarchial group has to a spokesperson. But after assuring themselves that Reeves was paying fair wages and that his company had maintained an excellent safety record, she said, the Chestnut Hill Friends dropped any lingering reservations.
Despite their frugality, the Quakers wanted to spend money where it counted, on serving their members and the public.
tldr: new Quaker meetinghouse was being built with non-union labor in Philadelphia and a union member cut all the structural steel with an acetylene torch and then set it on fire.
Personally, I don't see anything that distinguishes union tactics from the mafia practices of extorting protection money out of businesses. They like to justify the thuggery by talking about how well trained they are and how safely they produce a building, but if the difference were really that stark, people would happily pay the difference for a quality building. Instead, they get slowdowns and cost overruns for slightly better craftsmanship.
Does modern society benefit from the existence of unions?
"Ah, you miserable creatures! You who think that you are so great! You who judge humanity to be so small! You who wish to reform everything! Why don't you reform yourselves? That task would be sufficient enough."
-Frederick Bastiat
-Frederick Bastiat