Unions represent those that par excellence create new wealth, the workers. But they create no new wealth themselves while seeking to capture more wealth. Hence

Unions represent those that par excellence create new wealth, the workers. But they create no new wealth themselves while seeking to capture more wealth. Hence, rent seekers. Of course a manager getting a $1 million bonus or a CEO ensuring their golden parachute while the company goes down the drain (thus hardly "creating any new wealth") is not called "rent seeking" while a construction worker getting $1 per hour more due to union bargaining is. Correct, a manager/CEO/construction worker negotiating higher compensation by threatening to leave is not rent seeking. That's because this factor of production would not be employed at a lower wage. Rent seeking is a technical term with a specific definition, not a general term of derision. Unions meet that definition, CEOs (in their role as labor) mostly do not.