[d4mi3n]

The point of a union is to represent its members. Not all unions are good, but good unions should and do advocate for better working conditions and compensation for their members.

It’s fine to not agree with this but it’s also important to recognize that, in many industries, employees have no leverage to individually bargain for more pay. Corporate policy or a monopoly on a job market means a business won’t have financial incentive to pay any more than the minimum they can to maintain enough of a workforce to remain profitable.

Add to that a general desire for public companies to prioritize short term stock gains over long term growth and we end up with a common operating state that can be pretty harsh for the average participant of the US economy.

Generally, if a manufacturing job is the only available job in town, you take it, move (if you can afford to), or go hungry.