I had to share: I have a friend who is a Canadian (non-Torontonian) ex-pat living overseas. He emailed me today to say he wished Chris Farley were still alive, because then he could make a movie about our mayor.
I think we need balance. I'm sure most would agree with fair wages but what is fair? For example, is a low end job fair at $22 per hour? Or is it only fair at $25? Is it fair at $30, or are people getting overpaid then? And in some jobs, the pay is the same between union and non-union, except that the non-union workers don't have to pay union dues, which are often hundreds of dollars per year. In addition, should people advance just because of seniority, or should people advance because of ability? I'm sure you've heard of the ubiquitous example of the crappy union worker who has been shuffled around from department to department because he's got seniority even though he's a total dolt. Not a bad person, but just ineffective.
The point here is that it's not a black-and-white argument. Either as a worker or a management type, I'd rather have a fair non-unionized environment than a stifling unionized environment, but a fair union structure is something that can help both.