One may argue whether or not unions have a legitimate role in private industry – but BART is a public institution, holding monopoly power over mass transit options in much of the San Francisco Bay Area. There are few journalists or commentators left, even in the Bay Area, who won’t consider that excessive union power is the reason for excessive compensation packages for BART employees. But compensation is only one aspect of how unions in the public sector damage the solvency and effectiveness of public institutions. Many union negotiated work rules greatly impede the ability of unionized public agencies to operate efficiently. They undermine the authority of public officials – most of whom are elected by these same unions they supposedly manage – to promote based on merit, to demote or fire for incompetence or negligence, to streamline operations, to change job descriptions, or otherwise manage their agencies. And this affects every unionized transit agency, public utility, municipal bureaucracy, public safety organization, school district or public works department in the United States. The BART strike cast a bright light on excessive compensation for unionized public workers. But the issues run far deeper than just money. If government workers were not exempt from the challenges of globalization because of their unions, they would use their influence within government and as private citizens to help break up monopolies and enable competition. This in-turn would lower the overall cost-of-living and benefit everyone. Instead, public sector unions are monopolies themselves, first among equals, in an increasingly monopolized society.
Posted on: Fri, 12 Jul 2013 18:25:53 +0000
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