> IUE-CWA Local 86004 President Jake Aguanaga offered his plant, located in Arkansas City, Kansas, as an example of how much manufacturing capacity could be converted: more than 52 percent of his workforce has been laid off, and several football fields worth of factory space are currently sitting idle. “If GE trusts us to build, maintain, and test engines which go on a variety of aircraft where millions of lives are at stake, why wouldn’t they trust us to build ventilators?” he said.
This reminds me of the story of Audi's unions demand electric model for main German plant: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=13986889
Unions don't just exist for the workers. If management acts shortsighted in such a way that their jobs are impacted, they can force management to make better business decisions.