Americans typically view Mrs. Thatcher as an uncompromising enemy of the British welfare state, but that isn’t true; her impacts on public spending were relatively minimal. Her legacy really revolved around a massive campaign of privatization and the crushing of the unions. The former was a mixed bag, but the latter, regardless of how you feel about Thatcher and the workers she humbled, was necessary. Unions had the UK over a barrel in 1979, and refused to use their power for good. Something had to be done, and she did it.
In a similar vein, Reagan sent a message to American workers by obliterating the air traffic controllers’ union in the 80s. Unions have been on a downhill slide in the US ever since. Not coincidentally, so have wages, relative to inflation and productivity.
Biden is clearly all-in for unions. His pro-labor legislation isn’t going to get through the Senate. But what if it did? Would that be a good thing for America?
Unions have a history in this country of being corrupt and socially reactionary. They also drive up costs–sometimes unnecessarily–and frequently drive employers to replace American workers with machines or foreigners. Since the economy has changed, any new unions would probably be dominated by women and people of color instead of bull walruses smoking cigars, which would be an improvement. The rest of the union package, however, would stay pretty much the same.
Personally, I would rather use government to create a truly effective welfare state than to re-energize unions as a mechanism to help struggling workers. However, given the GOP’s continuing interest in wrecking, rather than improving, government, I can understand why giving more power to unions might look like a better and more stable way to drive up the incomes of employees in the long run. Budget increases and cuts come and go with elections; union power, once established, is unlikely to disappear.
The other question, of course, is whether white male workers will reward the Democrats for their advocacy of unions at the polls. Based on recent history, I have my doubts. For most people, Mr. Potato Head rules in this country, not economic self-interest.