Comment Re:It can never be fair (Score 1) 150
Unions do the exact same thing, why isn't that collusion? I see no issue with a bunch of companies agreeing not to engage in a poaching war.
The rules for Unions are different. Would you have the same attitude with your 5 year old drinking and out til 3AM than a 22 year old? The rules for the companies is that it's collusion. They did something they weren't supposed to.
As to why, it's like the offside rule in soccer/hockey. The rule itself doesn't make much sense if you think about it by itself (why not let people charge on breakaways) but it has side effects (fewer forwards up, more guys back on defense, even FEWER goals, if that is possible with the top tier teams).
One company/corporation has a lot more power than an individual. A union does some work to make the power a bit more equal. But if you get corporations colluding, the power goes back to the corporation. Side effects? No growth in wages. No increased purchasing power (remember that the US economy is 70% consumer based, the bulk of that money comes from wages). People doing odd borrowing to maintain a standard of living (thinking of your home as a piggy bank is due to stagnant wages, and was a part of a great Economic Collapse). Squelching of wage increases has a lot of negative consequences, at least you can trim the illegal parts out.