Any union that can't accept workers choosing their own representatives through universal franchise is finished.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
The reality is that no one can be forced to join a union against their will, and a union cannot take action against those who decide not to join their union.
There is nothing that says unions have a God-given right to be there. We have to work at it and make ourselves relevant to every section of the workforce.
This is the crux of the problem: because the Republicans and the right wing have been successful in almost eliminating unions, everyone else has suffered as a result.
My problem with unions is they breed mediocrity.
The unions may continue to decline, but if they do, it'll be their fault.
I sometimes think that unions don't understand that we live in a free society, and people have the right to not select union representation if they don't want it.
If you don't have collective agreements between unions and employers, governments have to legislate more.
Unions go hand-in-hand with a strong middle class.
It has no enforceable standards to stop a union from conspiring with employers to keep another stronger union out or from negotiating contracts with lower pay and standards that members of another union have spent a lifetime establishing.
The unions still have a job to do, representing their members' interests to governments and parliaments. And I think collective agreements still have a role, alongside markets and laws.