Quote Originally Posted by DJD View Post
With all due respect I just can't see how they are good or productive for the economy. The case in Wisconson isn't about big Corporations and Unions it's about tax payers and Unions....at least thats what I see.

Unions have always been a very small part of the working force. So I don't see how they had much impact on the economic downfall. To me that was failed policies by self serving do-gooders in Washington. Spending more than we have is always a problem and ignoring problems the way those fartknockers do is never the way either.

I actually agree that the unions had a time when they were needed but to me that was back when options for employment were few and work place standards sukked! Coal miners, auto/truck, manufacture, steel and others benefited but to me thats done. We now have so many gubment agencies that can shut a work place down in a heartbeat and prolly have 10 money grubbing lawyers for every person in this country to represent them.

Business owners are held to so many restrictions now that you can't verbally, mentally, financially or even hint of abuse on an employee. Plus if you even get close to discrimination either by pay, race, religion, sex or position your guilty until you can prove otherwise. Just try and fire someone without just cause and see what the labor department and lawyers will do to you.

I'm just asking what real benefit they serve and can it be done better without them?
Almost all of those things that you just stated happened because of unions protecting workers, and if unions are demolished many of those rights (not all) could disappear. Many people that are not part of a union have benefited from them in in a cursory way....whether it be monetarily or workplace safety or what have you. The states such as Wisconsin are saying that the unions helped cause this economic downturn and that the way to fix it is take their power away.......and downgrade wages of state workers. These people make up the middle class and have been the ones who have been most effected by the bad economy. So fix that problem by making it worse for them??? That doesn't make sense. Find someway to take away tax breaks away from companies that make billions or stop spending money on stupid earmarks that don't benefit the masses!