Labor Unions and Democracy

Factories were known for their ill treatment of their employees, long hours and dirty and unsafe conditions. In 1866, unions started to form to improve working conditions for the workers. A fundamental problem faced by democratic societies is as long as people live their lives individually and go their separate ways and be selfish individuals, they are unlikely to meet collectively to resolve issues. There needs to be meaningful unity among people to alleviate this problem to get people obliged to one another, so there is a willingness to sacrifice for shared goals. Bonding of its citizens creates a democracy. Unions seemed to offer the middle class a chance to become a crucial part of fostering institutions of constitutional democracy. The unions have went through several transitions, but have always worked for the working force. I will discuss the history of the various unions, their wins and losses, and the struggle of the employee to achieve democracy in the workplace.
The Typographical Society of New York was organized in 1795. In the fall of 1803, they went on strike for the enforcement of the first pay scale adopted for the printers of New York. It lasted ten years, but their demands were never met, and they ceased to exist in 1804. In 1935,, the Pennsylvania general strike in Philadelphia involved twenty thousand workers striking for a ten hour workday and increased wages. This strike ended in a victory for the workers. Unions would gain momentum as industry grew and a larger labor force was needed.
The National Labor Union and the Knights of Labor were founded in 1866. Employer resistance, public distrust and internal conflict, caused the union to experience a reduction in membership. As our country became ...

... middle of paper ...

... and gone, thrived and waned, but have always worked for employees. Unions brought democracy to the workers by having their voices be heard and participation in company organization. Unions give employees a democratic workplace and legislation was passed to protect workers during a strike. As imported goods rose and companies fled the northern states to the South or overseas, the union has found itself waning as their wage demands never ceased and wages increased to the extent companies could not compete with oversea competition.
“If workplace voice and civic voice are compliments, in the sense that they foster a shared understanding of democracy’s value and common cause, then we would expect the decline of union representation to affect the civic attitudes and democratic behavior of individuals outside the workplace as well.” (Bryan, Gomez, Kretsckmer & Willman)