[bsder]

> union working to protect their members in real, practical, day to day ways.

Unions are normally really good at this.

One of the standard responses to managers asking for something stupid in a steel mill was "Get the book". "The book" defined the procedures, equipment, and training required for most tasks. This is fairly normal for most union shops.

It's a lot easier to tell a manager to pound sand when he asks you to do something stupid when you know the union will back you up.