From
P-A-F, "
Note that employers will hire fewer (unionised) workers than they would if the workers were free to accept a lower wage."
Rubbish! They will hire fewer NON-unionised workers, and schedule them to the point of excessive fatigue, then should any of them step down for SAFETY reasons (fatigued), they will be summarily dismissed for being unable to perform to the level required by the company. THAT is the
REAL WORLD!
If a flight crew cost $500,000 an hour, how many routes would be possible. Not many, because pilots don't produce $500,000 in income per hour.
Your comment wrt the above shows a measure of inexperience in REAL WORLD dealings,
P-A-F. Employees' salaries, in general, don't determine the viability (or otherwise) of products - the market price is set by (i) the DEMAND for the product, (ii) the
existing (if any) current price, (iii) the available supply, (iv) the ABILITY of the consumer to pay.
As an example, it is possible to purchase a seat between 2 major cities in Oz for as low as (say) $100 on a B737, however, there is also a limited market for VIP's who will charter a B737 for their
sole use, hence paying well above the market average.
Your example of a pilot's salary being based on $500,000 per hour is ridiculous to the extreme -
however, let's assume that a pilot is paid $500,000 per YEAR
Let's assume that this pilot flies 850 hours per annum (a realistic target) - that works out at $588.24 per hour.
On a 150 seat B737, flying a 1 hour leg (say, BNE-SYD) that works out at a cost of
$3.92 per passenger!!
Assuming the F/O is on 70% of the ($500k p.a.) Capt's salary, that adds another $2.75 to the ticket...a total of
$6.67 per passenger ticket!!