DSkippy

Yep. That's what I meant by all levels (thousand white collar jobs slashed too)...but upper level management has to buy into and sacrifice some of their perks and comps and most importantly obligations to retirees must be met.

I'm not against the union workers. My father put food on the plate and IBEW made sure his family (self included) had good benes to rely on. What I do observe, however, is many unions are rife with corruption. They are lead by people who have a vested interest in friction analogous to civil rights leaders; they need to create dis-satisfaction to justify their existence and this typically only benefits them. In many cases unions stifle competition internally from the workers/union members themselves and their initiative, and there is a culture of suppression towards ambition and upward mobility. Furthermore, there is many times a combative approach to relations with management.

I think they still serve a purpose, but they need to be restructured, and serve their members in a more productive positive manner. Save the battles for real injustices; encourage people to grow into whatever they wish. More people coming up through the ranks into management would certainly foster an empathy from higher ups. And a more team oriented approach between workers and management serves everyone. We all have different roles, skills and abilities and all are equally important.