So far all anyone commenting really knows is what Harley has chosen to say, and of course they are only telling the part that makes them look good. I'd rather see the details, and I'm guessing those details are what caused the no vote. The last contract took away much, not just in terms of wages but in terms of benefits and basic rules. A big issue developed from the temporary part time workers (TPT's) Harley stuffed into that contract. For those unfamiliar with the TPT craze, this started out many years ago as a way to cover absenteeism and vacations, giving the company a lower cost option than direct hiring of extra workers. They are paid less, get no benefits to speak of, etc. However, just like some of the companies in the auto industry Harley borrowed the idea from, they abused the system and kept using TPT's while laying off regular workers. I'll bet that is one of the union's big issues.
As for the comments about trained monkeys, I always love to hear from uninformed folks with an anti-union axe to grind but no direct experience on the jobs being discussed. Working on a modern assembly line is no cake walk, and in an age where certain politicians want burger flippers to make at least $15 per hour for a truly low skill job, I would expect semi-skilled and skilled workers to demand significantly more. As a retired manager in the auto industry, I have first hand experience with modern assembly plants. When we hired, we had people pre-screened by an outside concern, then we brought in groups of 20 at a time for a three week off-line training and work hardening program. Once the group was put on the actual assembly line, many quit after the first day or two, and only 2 of the 20 on average managed to stick through the 90 day probationary period. Not exactly a piece of cake job any monkey could do.
Jerry