> If we had a union we would be training people from customer support to engineer

This, to my knowledge, very rarely works.

> software would be improved immensely if all developers spent a few years doing tech support for the elderly

This, on the other hand, absolutely does.

I'm sorry but this is just absurd. Not everyone has the same aptitude for every job. For a company or country to function you have to acknowledge this and put people in jobs suited to their natural talents.