So in fact You have nothing to learn from other people, you know exactly what happened and nearly happened to AF pilots because of the main union you are talking about ...i wouldn't dare to talk about US unions or British unions myself as i have no idea of how they work inside their management ...but you do so because of course you have such a french experience and carrier ...
The management of our main union is changing every two year because there are huge power struggle between piltos wanting to get the power inside our main union ...to know why you must be french and know really more than what channel4 is telling you on the news !!! I have nothing against you because virtuallity is not enough to feed me, so i will learn you something ..you can ignore or just listen : in France and in our airline there are two ways of getting powerful seats : first is to be someone people notice when you get employed by the airline, they feel your natural leadership and abilities and you go up the hierarchy after years ...second is to become a union representative, there you get your pilot salary + a per diem for your union work that is really not peanuts...and after years of struggling against your company they offer you a better seat but not as a union representative...of course inside the airline hierarchy...we have many examples of that ....
The 2000 members (i was one of them until very recently) don't have any power except to pay their monthly rate and listen and read what the guys on top did under the name of the union ...never you will get any democratic procedure ...except when the =union is changing its heads..and as i said people fight for these while 2000 are voting....the guy who's now in the "hot shots" voted a "B scale " pay system for the union...he and his friends who had the power decided that ....and it is just because the small unions talked a lot about it that just before it was too late these representatives removed their project that was decided with the airline of course...these guys would have had a great position after such a vote !!!
I won't rewrite all the stories we had with unions in france, and as i said the fact that 2000 people are members of our main union is really not a warranty that facts coming out will be the best options...we have enough examples....
In 1939 a majority of germany was convinced Hitler was right ....just a minority was against ....in south africa during apartheid a majority of whites were ok with that, a minority was against ....
It would be great to be less agressive ...you are trying to make things personnal since you opened that thread...