Mosca and the Unions

Mosca's Iron Law: For no matter what reason an organization was started, it will sooner or later serve to further the goals of its leaders.

I just don't get it. I'm absolutely stunned by the irresponsible behavior of the Transit Workers Union in NYC. Their self-serving behavior and the general shortsightedness of Unions in general will be the death of them if not the economy as a whole. As far as the Transit workers are concerned, their strike is illegal. They have certain level of job security working for the New York City Municipal government the few workers enjoy. The cost of this long term stability is their legal ability to strike. I don't want to get into the general morality of this case. (One of the primary issues the workers are striking over the is the right to retire at 50.) But they are trying to maximize their leverage by striking at this time of year of much like when the sanitation workers strike at the height of a New York summer. That's not bargaining in good faith- something the Unions never do.

But what's more disgusting to me is the blatant greed and shortsightedness of labor in general. Don't they realize that it's this very behavior that encourages employers to outsource their labor needs? How do they intend to combat this? By giving money to political candidates who will do their best ot make outsourcing illegal? If that happens, the company itself may be forced to close and then they'll be out of a job. It seems to me that Unions and their members have a complete lack of the ability to follow things out to their logical ends. It's never enough for labor. Is this a dearth of cognitive capacity or just naked opportunism?

The point is this. There was a time in history when unions were necessary. Collective bargaining raised the living standards of many people. But that time has passed. Labor unions no longer serve any purpose other than to enrich their leaders. In no place is this truism more apparent than in Hawaii where the unions are king. There is a reason why most unions have close ties with organized crime which interestingly enough has no unions itself. WalMart has proven that employers can be fair to their workers without unions. Whereas it was in the past when companies needed to be brought to heel with their treatment of their employees. Now it is unions who need to be slapped hard in the face so they recognize reality in the global economy. This relationship between labor and management doesn't have to be adversarial. It's only in the interests of the Union Bosses that this animosity and distrust continues. And honest day's pay for an honest day's work? These days, it seems that it we all would be better served if that adage was reversed. An honest's days work for an honest day's pay.