The historical behavior of unions is commensurate with the historical behavior of employers and strike-breakers. Your adversary is not going to be ethical and

The historical behavior of unions is commensurate with the historical behavior of employers and strike-breakers. Your adversary is not going to be ethical and nonviolent. Unions resolve the prisoner's dilemma in favor of the prisoners. The game is set up like this: In each trial, 3 players distribute $300. A and B vote on whether E gets $100 or $150. E can cast a tie-breaking vote. E decides how to distribute the remainder to A and B. | A gets | B gets | E gets | +--------+--------+--------+----- | $100 | $100 | $100 | A $100, B $100 | $150 | $ 0 | $150 | A $150, B $100 | $ 0 | $150 | $150 | A $100, B $150 | $ 75 | $ 75 | $150 | A $150, B $150 Obviously, if A and B cooperate, and voluntarily form a cartel with the power to enforce cooperation, they will experience a better outcome. Because in the long run, in repeated trials, the employer will be pocketing an extra $50 in a huge number of trials, while pitting the employees against each other.