Question

Please write atleast one page on these questions.

Why do workers unionize? What are your thoughts on working for a union?

Answer 1

A labor union is an organization that acts as an intermediary between its members and the business that employ theworkers.Labor unions give workers the power to negotiate for more favorable working conditions and other benefits through collective bargaining.

Union members earn better wages and benefits than workers who aren't union members.On average, union workers' wages are 28 percent higher than their nonunion counterparts.It's usually impossible, and always difficult, for an   individual worker to go one-on-one with an employer when it's necessary to protect your livelihood.

The president of the company may not even be located in your community.Your supervisor knows you need to work - and the supervisor has the final word.One person's voice just isn't strong or loud enough to influence a large, impersonal organization.Unions provide the responsible, united voice, which gives millions of wage and salary earners their proper share of participation in American industrial democracy.

Since the end of the 18th Century, American working people have joined together in democratic unions to exercise a voice in their own lives and futures, in a way that individual wage earners cannot.Union members elect their own officers, determine their own goals, set their own dues, and choose the rules by which their unions operate for the common good.

Collective bargaining is the heart and soul of the labor union.Collective bargaining occurs when a group of people, such as the workforce at a company, bands together to increase its negotiating power.A single worker might feel that a certain new safety measure should be implemented in his factory, but he might have limited power to get the company to install the new measure.

If the entire workforce is made aware of the need for the new measure and bands together to pressure the company to install it, there is a much greater chance that the company will comply.Labor unions band workers together, allowing the voices of individual workers to be heard and possibly made into a goal of the union.

Unionized workers typically elect representatives to bring concerns to the union's attention.One of the top benefits of being a union worker is that you enjoy a better wage as compared to your non-union counterparts.Union workers get about 20 percent more in terms of wages compared to others in similar jobs that aren't supported by a union.

Union workers are also more likely to enjoy consistent pay raises on a regular basis.This is due to collective bargaining between the union and the employer that results in an agreement setting out clear terms regarding pay and wages.

With a nonunion job, the employer can set the wage without any formal bargaining process or input from the employee.On average, union workers are more likely to enjoy better benefits compared to non-union employees.
That includes health, retirement accounts, and paid sick leave.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, 77 percent of union workers get pensions after they retire from the job, compared to only 20 percent of non-union workers. Again, union representatives work out these details as a part of the collective bargaining agreement with the employer.America's union members want the things all Americans have always wanted.They want the opportunity to improve themselves and their families.

Unions foster their members' interests on the job through collective bargaining with management, in the exercise of industrial democracy.Today, there are about 150,000 collective bargaining agreements across the United States.
Ninety-eight percent were arrived at through mutual agreement of workers and employers.

Strikes get a lot of public attention, but fair contracts - not strikes - are what workers want.They reluctantly exercise their democratic right to withhold their labor only when there is no other way to reach an agreement.
They want to pass on a strong, prosperous nation to their children.

Unions are leading champions of good governance, good schools, the protection of individual rights and the expansion of individual opportunities for all Americans.