I often point out that Unions are LEGAL organized crime. I see no difference between a mook telling a shop owner that he has nice windows in his store, and it might benefit him to buy “Insurance” against vandalism, and a Union Leader pointing out that a manufacturer has a nice shop running, and it would be a shame if all his workers were to walk out (possibly against their own will) and leave his shop vacant unless they pay some inflated wadges.
Still there are other times when the Union “Negotiation” is in the realm of illegal. Some cases are a little on the soft illegal side, like when a school union that is forbidden by contract chooses to strike anyway, but other times its much more serious:
Ten Philadelphia union members have been indicted for allegedly using illegal means of coercion, including the torching of a Quaker meeting house, to force local contractors to use organized labor.
The federal indictment, which was unsealed Tuesday, accuses members of Ironworkers Local 401 of several crimes, including racketeering and arson. Other alleged crimes include incidents in which union members allegedly threatened or assaulted contractors and damaged construction equipment and job sites.
While I understand the history of Unions and labor, in a day when we have national labor laws, and agencies like OSHA, I see no point in them. At least private companies can take steps to have “open shop” workers, tho this is limited in non “Right to Work” states. Public sector Unions are nothing but a racket.
This doesn’t surprise me at all. We had to deal with local 98, stalkers, picketers, and threats in Philly because the city mandated minority owned businesses for the job and the minority owned businesses weren’t union. Anyone that has ever dealt with a union knows how they are.