Ensuring Freedom by Preserving the Values of Trade Unions
Thoughtful committed citizens are the only thing that have ever changed the world.
—Margaret Mead
Anti-union sentiment is increasingly pervading American culture. In fact, one critic says, “The United States in now on the verge of a risky experiment: to become the first parliamentary democracy in modern world history without a substantial trade union movement” (Lichtenstein 66). In addition to weakening bargaining power, the judicial system allows workers to resign in the midst of a strike and scab on coworkers. A huge
number of professionals and supervisors were even deemed exempt from representation (Lichtenstein 66). Legislation and corporate wealth are eroding the power of organized labor and thereby obfuscating workplace democracy; extinguishing employee rights; eroding the living standards of working, working- poor, and middle class Americans; muting the voice of minorities; retarding environmental improvements; increasing corporate domination of politics; and auguring exploitation of workers throughout the world. However, a significant portion of freedoms, to which Americans have become accustomed, would be greatly diminished or non-existent without the social values that are embodied by organized labor.
Evidence suggests that employers seldom behave democratically without the mandate of a higher authority such as the government or a union. It is no wonder that workplace dictatorships are becoming a widespread phenomenon as government regulations fail to adequately protect workers but enhance the power of employers: “Fear of being fired, downsized, laid off, of not making pension time, poverty in a new economy, of part-time and insecure, low-paid jobs, an...
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...titute, 1997.
Lawrence, Vince. “John Sweeney’s Militant Unionism.”
The New Republic 6 Oct. 1997: 23 - 24.
LeRoy, Greg. “The Terrible Ten.” The Progressive 28 May 1999: 27 - 30.
Lichtenstein, Nelson. “Work Rights, Individual Rights.” Dissent Spring 1997: 66 - 72.
Mantois, Gregory. A New Labor Movement for the New Century. New York: Monthly Review Press, 1998.
Moberg, David. “Union Pension Power.” The Nation 1 June 1998: 16 - 19.
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To conclude this analysis on the basis of the labor’s extensive history, Sloane & Witney (2010) propose, “it is entirely possible that labor’s remarkable staying power has been because of the simple fact that to many workers, from the nineteenth century to the present, there really has been no acceptable substitute for collective bargaining as a means of maintaining and improving employment conditions” (p.80). In the end, it is important to anticipate unions and employers presently work together to find solutions that will enhance collective bargaining strategies and practices to serve the interest of both parties.
David Brody argues that the rise of contractual or collective bargaining relationships during the post WWII era formalized the relationship between employers and unions, but simultaneously began to put a break on shop floor activism. Explain Brody’s argument and, where relevant, incorporate Weber’s theory of bureaucracy.
Throughout the history of the United States of America the continuation of misfortunes for the workforce has aggravated people to their apex, eventually leading to the development of labor unions.
Rosenfeld, J. 2010. Little Labor: How Union Decline is Changing American Landscape. Pathways: A Magazine on Poverty, Inequality and Social Policy.
The early 1900s was a time of many movements, from the cities to the rural farms; people were uniting for various causes. One of the most widespread was the labor movement, which affected people far and wide. Conditions in the nation’s workplaces were notoriously poor, but New York City fostered the worst. Factories had started out in the city’s tenements, which were extremely cramped, poorly ventilated, and thoroughly unsanitary. With the advent of skyscrapers, factories were moved out of the tenements and into slightly larger buildings, which still had terrible conditions. Workers were forced to work long hours (around 12 hours long) six hours a day, often for extremely low pay. The pay was also extremely lower for women, who made up a large portion of the shirtwaist industry. If a worker were to openly contest an employer’s rule, they would be promptly fired and replaced immediately. Also, strength in numbers did not always work. Managers often hired brutal strikebreakers to shut movements down. The local police and justice were often of no help to the workers, even when women were being beaten. At the time, the workers needs were not taken seriously and profit was placed ahead of human life. This was not just a struggle for workers’ rights; it was also a movement for the working class’ freedom.
Beginning in the late 1700’s and growing rapidly even today, labor unions form the backbone for the American workforce and continue to fight for the common interests of workers around the country. As we look at the history of these unions, we see powerful individuals such as Terrence Powderly, Samuel Gompers, and Eugene Debs rise up as leaders in a newfound movement that protected the rights of the common worker and ensured better wages, more reasonable hours, and safer working conditions for those people (History). The rise of these labor unions also warranted new legislation that would protect against child labor in factories and give health benefits to workers who were either retired or injured, but everyone was not on board with the idea of foundations working to protect the interests of the common worker. Conflict with their industries lead to many strikes across the country in the coal, steel, and railroad industries, and several of these would ultimately end up leading to bloodshed. However, the existence of labor unions in the United States and their influence on their respective industries still resonates today, and many of our modern ideals that we have today carry over from what these labor unions fought for during through the Industrial Revolution.
On July 12th 2005, Heather Tice’s life changed forever. Heather was in the passenger seat of a car driving down a steep hill with her seatbelt unbuckled. The next thing she knew she was laying on the ground, covered in blood, unable to feel her own legs. Heather would later find out that she had received an injury to the C7 section of her spinal cord, which is located in the neck. Heather’s injury was incomplete, so despite the height of the injury she retains the use of her upper body (Car accident causes).
The collective bargaining rights of the worker are disappearing at alarming rates. Data from the...
Montgomery, David. The Fall of the House of Labor: The Workplace, the State, and American Labor Activism, 1865-1925. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1987.
In many nations, the relationship between labor and production has often been a tense one. On one side of the equation, businesses have insisted on greater productivity at lower costs. On the other side, labor (most often in the form of labor unions) has insisted that increased productivity can be best be achieved if the workers have a reasonable “living” wage and job security (Howard 2002).
Throughout American history, labor unions have served to facilitate mediation between workers and employers. Workers seek to negotiate with employers for more control over their labor and its fruits. “A labor union can best be defined as an organization that exists for the purpose of representing its members to their employers regarding wages and terms and conditions of employment” (Hunter). Labor unions’ principal objectives are to increase wages, shorten work days, achieve greater benefits, and improve working conditions. Despite these goals, the early years of union formation were characterized by difficulties (Hunter).
Domhoff discusses the prevalence of labor unions in the New Deal era. In fact, by 1945, with the help of the liberal-labor alliances, union membership had increased five-fold to fifteen million in that past decade (pg. 172). However, after 1945, the liberal-labor alliances never saw a victory against corporate conservatives. Because of the corporate world’s domination of policy implementation, politicians rules time and again against labor unions because it works in corporate America’s favor. Labor unions serve as many working class Americans’ avenue into the political sphere; denying them a right to unionize is not only a fundamental violation of free speech but also morally and ethically wrong. Overall, Domhoff’s critique of wealthy politicians (primarily Republicans) is merited considering he argues empirically with statistics supporting extremely skewed voting trends against unions. Additionally, Domhoff’s argument exudes sympathy toward those less fortunate; I share Domhoff’s sentiment that is imperative we promote equality amongst classes, one way in which we should do so is through advocacy of labor
Flanagan, R. J. (2005). Has Management Strangled U.S. Unions? Journal of Labor Research, 26(1), 33-63.
Spinal cord injury symptoms can range from minor to severe and sometimes can even result in death. If you are experie...
The laws and regulations surrounding Industrial Relations since the 1900’s have, at each reform, placed tighter constraints on the amount of power unions are able to exert. The reforms have also radically increased managerial prerogative, through an increased use of individual bargaining, contracts and restrictions imposed on unions (Bray and Waring, 2006). Bray and W...