[bluntus logicimus]

Way too long a thread for me to wade through. Read the 1st couple of pages and picked u on a theme. Apologies if someone already addressed this. Not all unions are the same. Not all employers are the same. Not all employer-union relations are the same. And finally, it takes two to tango. Any language in a collective agreement is jointly authored by the two parties and agreed to. No one is imposing anything on the other party.
Some examples of misinformation being spread via generalities
1.) On seniority – It does not guarantee promotions. It does get you more vacation time on an entitlement grid, it does provide you with an upper hand in posted positions (as long as you meet all of the qualifications), and yes, on a time-based wage increment scale, you get more money the longer you are there but there is a cap.
2.) On hard work – I call bullsh1t to the generalization that non-union businesses are more productive, profitable and visionary than a non-union business. I suspect other factors are more responsible if differences do exist.
3.) The concept of performance plans, incentives and team bonuses exists in unionized businesses as well. For the non-believers, flip through collective agreements of employers in progressive industries to see how creative and how very much like a non-union employer the performance environment can be.
4.) Finally, hard workers and specialization/personal career development initiatives are also rewarded, through special project pay, achievement bonuses and even overtime and standby pay can be lumped in here.
5.) Yes, it’s hard to fire someone in a union environment but a lot of that has to do with poor documentation and inconsistent practice – both of mgmt origin.

If you’ve read this far . . . I work in labour relations for the employer. Our company does very well – our union relationships are commendable – things get done – what we do with our unions is a best practice and other companies seek out our experiences and knowledge to get to the same place.