I agree, once trained (any profession really) they should be paid for thier skills. All of the jobs you mentioned (w/one exception) require additional training/schooling other than a high school diploma and most of the time it's on their dime. Your not comparing apples to apples here.
My brother is a pilot for Delta Connection. Delta did give him some training once he was hired. Of course it ran him about 75k in student loans, several hundreds of hours in flight time, book training, instructing, and many extra expensive hours in the flight S.I.M.S. to get to that point. He is currently flying a CRJ 700. He has been flying for Delta for over a year now as 1st Officer. How much do you think he makes? Try in the low 40's. I don't think any of us have to worry about "Bubba comin' in off the farm and jumpin' in the pilot seat ".
What certifications are the UAW's requiring applicants to have? Good high school GPA's and SAT scores? Having a family member already working there? Big deal!! The average wage for them is what, 27 bucks an hour? That's over 50k annually. Doing what, working an assembly line.
I'm in the home building business and saw change back in late 05 (bought my truck in July 05, things were great
). Then, all of a sudden, business dropped off and I mean dropped off. We rode it out for 06' tightening things up and selling off inventory. In 07' we realized we needed to make cuts asap. Was I willing to take a pay cut? You betcha'! It's not always about now but the future, I want the company to survive. I took a 10% cut in early 07' and have not received a bonus or a raise since. Business is bad. Concessions need to be made. If your not willing to roll with the times then I suggest you find another job. When the times improve and the company regains it's profitability margins people will be rewarded with pay increases and maybe even a bonus. Until then......survival mode.
Anyways, I think the era of the UAW needs to be in the history books.
John