“Have you never heard of the Knights of Labor, the Pullman Strike, the Coal Wars? Do you think the auto industry is the only one in which organized labor played a role?”
No.
Remember Eastern Airlines? I do. In 1989, the union representing Eastern’s mechanics and ramp service employees called a strike against the company, and the pilots’ and flight attendants’ unions called sympathy strikes, shutting down the airline completely. The strikes continued until Eastern collapsed and was liquidated to pay off creditors. All of the company’s employees lost their jobs permanently.
I found this sequence of events very instructive. Clearly, the union leaders did not do any of this for the benefit of the union members; the members who worked for Eastern all ended up in the unemployment line! No, this was all done for the benefit of the the union leaders themselves. By destroying Eastern, they were able to send a loud and clear message to the executives of every other company they would be negotiating with. And that message was: “Do not mess with us. We can and will wreck your company, and we don’t care who gets hurts in the process.”
So, in answer to your question: Yes, I am aware that the automotive industry is not the only one in which unions have played a role. I am also aware that the role they have played is one of expanding their own power and filling the pockets of union leaders. And they are perfectly willing to sacrifice union members in order to do that.
