Early Union activity was to provide safe workplaces, fair wages, and a reasonable work day. Some were really more like "Craft Guilds" in the tradition of the Europeans where training and quality of work was protected.
Today's Unions are more about Higher pay with little relationship to productivity (just say "Piece work" to a Union Boss and then start running). Recently they say "It's not about the pay but benefits". So benefits don't have a cost to the employer, right? I'd start believing that Unions were all for the working man as soon as they adopt a pay policy that pays Union Leaders no more than 10% more than the highest paid "rank and file" member.
"Last year, 110 Teamster officials received a salary of $150,000 or more—the highest number ever. Thirty-five Teamster officials made more than $200,000.
President Hoffa received the most total compensation of any Teamster official: $383,132."
http://www.tdu.org/2009salaryreport
Compare this with some of the "Better Paid" Teamsters at UPS:
"UPS employees are without a doubt one of the more fortunate employees with higher than average incomes and excellent benefits. Some UPS drivers normally make $1,000 per week. It has been reported they earn anywhere from $50,000 to $70,000 a year."
http://www.jeremiahproject.com/culture/ups_strike.html
When "Executives" that profess to have the "working man" at heart make salaries like this, they don't have any of the same problems like paying the rent, buying groceries, deciding between braces for the kids or new school clothes, driving the "old beater" a couple more years or getting a new one, etc.
Reality is that many union members make a lot less than UPS Drivers and the executives in their unions make a lot more than the 3-5 times that of the rank and file.
Union membership is definitely a choice. Just don't try and convince everyone that the only place greed exists is in Corporate America.
A pig is a pig whether they belong to the Country Club or the AFL-CIO