Unions In your own views, are unions still relevant? Explain why or why not. Submission Instructions: Your initial post should be at least 200 words,formatted and cited in current APA style (if used).

Unions

In your own views, are unions still relevant? Explain why or why not.

Submission Instructions:

Your initial post should be at least 200 words,formatted and cited in current APA style (if used). Your initial post is worth 8 points.
You should respond to at least two of your peers by extending, refuting/correcting, or adding additional nuance to their posts.Your reply posts are worth 2 points (1 point per response.)
All replies must be constructive and use literature where possible.

Post by classmate 1

Studies have shown that as of 2019, 27 states and Guam have adopted the right-to-work laws (Niznik, 2019). The trajectory and right of passage for employers who operate under the right-to-work bylaws provides them with the incentive that they can terminate an employee for no reason, good reason, or bad reason. For decades, labor unions have served as the voice of reason and structural support in the conditions of one’s employment (Selko, 2019). With so many states adopting the right to work laws and voluntarily choosing to operate independent of fostering a partnership with labor unions, the question then becomes “Are Labor Unions Still Relevant?”

In my opinion, though labor unions are slowly fazing out and are not as prevalent, they are indeed still relevant and necessary to hold employers to a certain standard of accountability as labor unions advocate on behalf of employees for: wage increase, serves as advocacy to raise the standard of living for the working class, promotes and ensures safe working conditions, and motivates employers to increase benefits for both workers and their families (Union Plus, n.d.). Though labor unions are seemingly on its way out, workers need fair treatment now more than ever.

Furthermore, a lot of employers tends to operate under unethical conditions when no one is looking i.e. running sweat shops, abusing child labor laws, furnishing unlivable wages and unethically mandating 70 hour work weeks (Union Plus, n.d.). With minimal enforcement from an agency or otherwise to check the climate of the working environment, harsh working conditions and abuse as such will prevail unfortunately. We need to find a way to bring back our unions.

References

Niznik, J. (2019). Learn About Right-to-Work Laws. Retrieved from https://www.thebalancecareers.com/right-to-work-2071691(Lin

Post by classmate 2

When examining the history of unions in the United States, their influence in many industries is evident. Workers for centuries have worked under the supervision of others in exchanged for their efforts, time and earned wages. The right to join with others and collectively bargain for better wages, benefits and working conditions is the premise for most unions in the United States. Unions also have the ability to incorporate politics as a mechanism to influence their members to support certain initiatives. The facility I work for is unionized and as a human resources leader, my role plays a significant part in managing the expectations of our colleagues, delegates appointed and the union organizers of 1199SEIU.

Whether unions are relevant or not can only be determined by the members they serve. As an employer who has agreed on the terms of a Collective Bargaining Agreement and maintains the requirements of this “playbook,” managing the employer/employee relationship that includes open dialogue regarding concerns is essential. There has been a significant decline in the activities of unions within healthcare, the industry I work for as Vice President of Human Resources. Unionization is difficult because unions must attract and maintain members against the resistance of their employers. Our company owns several hospitals and only a segment of those facilities is unionized.

Sylvia Peraza

References:

1199SEIU. (2020). Retrieved July 7, 2020, from http://www.1199seiu.org/(Link