No, not the UK. Maggie T. did what she could to erode the power of the UK unions in the 70s and 80s, and largely succeeded.
With regards to having a beer on the job; depends on the circumstances. If we're talking about beer any time, any place then no, that's not on. However, a beer or two for lunch (if you're not a pilot, ATCO, train driver, fireman etc) never killed or harmed nobody. Going out for lunch and enjoying a glass or two of wine is, in my opinion, the only civilised way to do it. I visited the USA not long ago, as an instructor, and enjoyed a glass of wine for lunch every day. The locals were initially in a state of shock
but soon came to realise that it actually didn't degrade my performance. No, I'm not a pilot; I teach ground stuff like Weight & Balance.
Now if you want to talk about sick unions virtually running the shop, look no further than Germany. Their "Betriebsrat", or workers council, can and will impose restrictions on the employer and gain benefits for the employees that boggles the mind. Over on the other side of the divide, you have the USA. I belive that somewhere in the middle, like in Scandinavia for instance, you have the right balance.