There is almost 0 education needed for these jobs save for a weekend of safety videos and "what do you do if the machine freezes?"(call maintenance and continue to watch machine do nothing) videos.
i went to school with several of the stamping plant maintenance mechanics and they would be standing there with the employee scratching their heads. alot of those boys werent that bright, sorry to say.
im against unions for the most part, there are a few exceptions but only a few. unions are part of the reason products cost so much. companies have to raise their prices to offset the overhead costs. a union i worked for when i first moved back here let me go when they had a lay off because of senority not skill. i could do my job better than most of the journeymen, according to my boss.