*****UPDATE: 11/5/2016
I am in favor of unions (under certain circumstances), such as when they are used to correct unfair work conditions and pay, and to deter illegal discrimination. However, public employee unions are a conflict of interest. Union members support politicians with their member donations, and the politicians, in turn, give out generous benefits (too generous to afford, in the case of California!) to the union members in exchange for their politicking and donations. Simple quid pro quo. 
The government does not oppress it's workers - just the opposite. It coddles them, then pays them more than private sector workers (when you add up the lifetime pay AND benefits). I'm not saying that public workers don't perform necessary services - indeed, they often perform them well - I'm saying that public taxpayer-funded unions are unnecessary, based on the traditional union role to right the wrongs inflicted on the workers. With a government job (even more so with a government UNION job) you are in for life, you can never get thrown out, unless you do, as Donald Trump famously stated, "stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody".
