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Re:University of Chicago Graduate Students Vote to Unionize by dnautics on Friday October 20, 2017 @02:41AM (#15513921)
I would have concern in that unions are typically great when labor is fungible. If there's a wide spread in individual productive value, unions are not so great. Unionizing is basically capitulation to the ethic that grad student labor is a commodity, which it may already be, but is certainly not the aspiration. If I were a grad student at the uofc I would almost certainly be a strike breaker. Your experiment waits for no one.
Re:University of Chicago Graduate Students Vote to Unionize by Symbiote on Friday October 20, 2017 @03:11AM (#15514024)
There are highly skilled professional unions in Europe, such as for doctors, pilots or engineers.

Before striking, there's working to rule. The experiment can continue, but the extra hours spent grading papers or doing additional tutorials are not worked.

Re:University of Chicago Graduate Students Vote to Unionize by CPLX on Friday October 20, 2017 @05:20AM (#15514513)
Your premise is dubious.

The entertainment industry unions are among the most longstanding and effective and there are no greater spreads in economic value than there are between a novice actor or screenwriter and a global movie star.

Re:University of Chicago Graduate Students Vote to Unionize by dnautics on Friday October 20, 2017 @02:45PM (#15518209)
I think you've made my point for me: the unions in acting basically serve to cement and magnify inequality in the system.