Unions are the principal means for workers to organize and protect their rights on the job. Unions give workers a voice with employers and provide a means to gain a measure of security and dignity on the job. Most unions maintain a paid professional staff to manage their activities. Unions pursue strategies and activities that serve the interests of their members.
These include representing members and negotiating with employers, recruiting new members and engaging in political action when necessary to support policies that improve working conditions for all workers. What is Collective Bargaining?
The simple phrase, collective bargaining, covers a wide variety of subjects and involves hundreds of thousands of union members in the process. Representatives of labor and management negotiate over wages and benefits, hours and working conditions. The settlement reached is spelled out in a written document or contract. The contract normally contains a grievance procedure to settle disputes.
It is the job of the union to enforce the contract on behalf of the members. Some researchers point to one additional factor: the decline of unions. But union membership and bargaining power declined over the next 70 years.
Businesses, however, worry that greater union power will impede profits and growth, restricting job opportunities for workers. It found unionization is a more effective way to reduce poverty than even earning a college degree. In short, yes. Workers covered by a union contract earn higher wages than nonunion workers, which translates into a higher per-employee cost for business owners. Unionized workers in California earn on average They are also more likely to receive employer-sponsored health benefits and a retirement plan.
Research on the other ways unions may affect businesses is more mixed. An analysis of more than studies of businesses around the world found, for example, that unionization appears to be connected with higher productivity in the education and construction sectors in the United States, but makes no difference in manufacturing. When it comes to profits, it appears unionization has a negative effect.
Another study looked at the market value of publicly traded companies before and after they were unionized. Further, research shows that companies that unionize are no more likely to go out of business than comparable companies that are not unionized. There are other cost concerns as well. Preliminary data suggests that unionized workers fared better during the pandemic in terms of job security. According to an analysis of data from the U. Bureau of Labor Statistics conducted by the Washington-based labor think tank Economic Policy Institute , union workers suffered fewer job losses, particularly in the leisure and hospitality industry, as well as retail, health care and social assistance jobs.
In California, the membership rate rose to The pandemic disproportionately impacted the restaurant, leisure and hospitality industries, which generally have lower union participation.
Unions have helped secure hazard pay, health and safety protections, and support for laid-off workers in the pandemic. Unionized workers are more likely to assert their right to a safe workplace , such as taking actions such as filing OSHA complaints, according to a study published in September An analysis of OSHA complaints showed that some high-risk industries with historically low unionization rates, such as agriculture, had relatively few complaints during the pandemic, from March 17, , to May 21, In California, unions have played an active role in the reopening process.
The law was aimed at helping an estimated , housekeepers, cooks, waiters and bartenders. Labor has also been vocal around employer-mandated vaccine requirements. Meanwhile, the union representing prison guards vowed to fight a state order requiring all employees working at health care facilities to be vaccinated.
An additional , workers are represented by unions, despite not being official union members. That means 13 million California workers are not in unions. In fact, low-wage and unskilled jobs, such as in retail and restaurants, have some of the lowest industry unionization rates. United Farm Workers , a legacy of Chavez, has a mere 6, members. In June, the U. Union members are expected to pay dues. However, even at a fully unionized shop, any worker who is represented by a union may choose not to join the union or pay membership fees — but they are still protected under the union contract, which is hammered out during a bargaining process involving workers, union representatives, and management.
The union must represent all workers equally, whether or not they elect to join. Currently, unions in 22 states are allowed to collect fair-share fees from public sector employees who have not joined their union to cover the costs of representation and collective bargaining in lieu of full union dues. After all, it costs money to negotiate a contract — union reps need to be paid for their time and labor, and the lights at the union office need to be kept on.
It may seem like a fair compromise, but not everyone is happy with the arrangement. There are multiple reasons why someone might not want to join a union. The majority of American labor unions still veer to the left; most are affiliated with the Democratic or Working Families parties , and actively support and contribute funds and resources to Democratic candidates and progressive campaigns — which may present a problem for someone on the right who finds themselves presented with a union contract, especially ahead of the crucial midterms.
Others may be ideologically opposed to the idea of organized labor. The antagonism between business and organized labor is not inevitable. But when employees are considered disposable, businesses can become less interested in protecting them. Employees also may lack someone to intervene on their behalf with management on safety issues when there is no union representation.
When workplaces become organized, the need for cooperation becomes more obvious. Companies recognize that they can take steps to make a stable workforce more safe, productive and effective, through training, better equipment, and making better use of their knowledge.
Unions, in turn, increasingly recognize the needs of employers to be responsive to customers and competitive in their markets. In some sectors, having a company story that involves union workers and living wages may be a competitive advantage commercially. Higher Wages 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 are also more likely to enjoy consistent pay raises on a regular basis. This is due to collective bargaining between the union on behalf of the employees and the employer that results in an agreement setting out clear terms regarding pay and wages. With a non-union job, the employer can set the wage without any formal bargaining process or input from the employee.
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