[gruez]

>It’s much closer to cartel conduct, and a flagrant antitrust/competition law violation.

>While the “number of small labourers team up against large employer” narrative sounds superficially like the actions of a labour union, what this appears to be is actually a number of small businesses forming a cartel to influence the prices for their goods. Probably blatantly illegal in much of the developed world.

Aren't labor unions (especially closed shop ones) basically a cartel for labor?

[milderworkacc]

A union is explicitly a labour cartel. But we as a society decided that giving workers more money and better conditions is good, and that they should be allowed to collectively bargain for them.

At the same time we for the most part decided that businesses best serve society when in the absence of market power, hence competition law enabling unions and outlawing cartels.

[maccolgan]

They are.