The premise to your question is probably the most import when considering exactly how a union should be structured.. Exactly who can be trusted with the purpose and direction of the pilot group?

Can the pilot masses be trusted to stay informed enough to actually have logical and valid opinions about what is best for the pilot group... Or in the alternative is it better that the pilots let a select group of managers do almost all the thinking and decision making?

No matter what union you have, there will always be a group of pilots that doubt the wisdom of trusting decisions to the will of the line pilots. The type of union you choose determines whether or not that approach has the power.