I wasn't asking in an anti-union stance. I'm actually curious.
Of course I understand the general purpose of a labor union. But I also understand that there are many situations where a union is unnecessary and actually detrimental to the labor force.
For example, if I pay all my employees the same wage I make and pay for the same insurance and retirement plan I have, would it be beneficial to my employees to join a union? Sure, this hypothetical is extreme, but it's just to examine the idea.
Is a union a good thing if there are no abuses from which labor needs to be protected? So why do these employees want a union? What are the benefits if there are no abuses? If there are abuses, what are they?
I'd really like to know the specifics. I'm not arguing that there could be no benefit. I'm asking what the benefits are in this specific case. I expect that there are some but I don't want to assume what they are.
I hope that you will understand that my question was not as belligerent as yours seems to me.
> For example, if I pay all my employees the same wage I make and pay for the same insurance and retirement plan I have, would it be beneficial to my employees to join a union?
Two questions:
How would you know that everyone has the same ? Only the boss knows without a union.
Also, if everyone has the same retirement and insurance plan but they are not good plans or the pay isn't good, are they not getting ripped off ?
> Also, if everyone has the same retirement and insurance plan but they are not good plans or the pay isn't good, are they not getting ripped off ?
Um. Not necessarily. If I sell you a car that has no tires and no engine, are you getting ripped off? Not necessarily. So I'd like to know the specifics of this case.
FWIW, I understand that just because my employees have the same compensation as I do, it may still be unfair. If I have no job responsibilities and they have to perform death-defying tasks, they might benefit from a union.
Then again, they might benefit even more from quitting and finding a different job.
You could equally flip your questions: If you only do things that your employees like, then why would you care if they have a union or not? In that case, the only thing a union would do is ensure that this state persists, which definitely is beneficial to employees.
Even a company that's great to work for today is just one leveraged buyout or restructuring away from worker's hell.
