Friday, December 14, 2012

Payback Is A ...

"On the private-sector side, one need look no further than the auto industry. Trying to preserve pay and benefit structures not sustainable since the 1960s, labor has wreaked havoc on Detroit, contributing to the need for the bailouts of General Motors and Chrysler.

"Something similar happened in the recent demise of Twinkies' maker Hostess. Its bakers union refused to recognize that the company was hemorrhaging money in an industry plagued by an excess in antiquated plants. The result is that 15,000 jobs have disappeared when some could have been saved.

"Public-sector unions, meanwhile, have all but declared war on the general public. In many cases, they have induced lawmakers to put their states and localities on a path to insolvency by approving massive, unfunded pension and retiree health care obligations. They are certain to pay a steeper price as taxpayers are forced to endure higher taxes or reduced services in the name of benefits that few get themselves."
http://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2012/12/12/union-right-to-work/1765439/

My limited experience with unions led me to believe they suffered all of the same flaws as other coercive political systems. People get elected to leadership roles by arousing the base instincts of the crowds; no one is elected to leadership of these organizations by asserting that "we don't know how good we have it."

Ultimately, "workers" will be better off without the government's coercive backing of unions; let's hope the day comes sooner, rather than later.

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