Since the 1970s, there has been a decline in unionization in the United States that has caused approximately 1/5 to 1/3 of the rise in the inequality of the nation (Continuing Assault on Unions, 2012.) For the last few years in particular, many state governments have enacted legislation to limit the power of unions, which are notorious for turning out the Democratic vote in state, local, and national elections. This paper will discuss changes in the membership of unions as well as how the decline of unions is having a detrimental impact on the status of the American worker.
During the last century, the membership of unions climbed to 6% of the labor force, during the Progressive Era (Reynolds, 2009.) Since 1842, unions had had the legal right to be formed, and workers were able to participate but employers were not obligated to bargain with them. Union methods were also restricted by the courts, which did not distinguish between business and union “restraints on competition.” In 1912, however, Congress passed the Lloyd-Lafollette Act that mandated collective bargaining by the United States Postal Service, as well as encouraging membership in the postal union. When the United States entered World War I, many policies were passed on behalf of the unions, resulting in membership increasing to 12% of the labor force. Labor boards established work councils made up of employee representatives, and even the government itself established a union. In 1919, one out of every five union workers went out on strike, including strikes on national clothing industry managers, steel strikes, and a Boston police force work stoppage as well (Labor History Timeline, 2013.) However, when the war ended, so did all of the pro-union interventions so that by 1924, unions only had 8% of the labor force and within the next decade, that figure dropped to 6%.
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During peacetime, however, there were eventually many actions taken to help revive union membership. The Railway Labor Act of 1926 represented the first significant effort for private-sector unionism, and basically mandated collective bargaining for all interstate railroads as well as setting up systems for federal involvement in labor disputes. As a result, the control of setting wages and prices was transferred from the market to the political forum. When the Great Depression occurred in 1929, Congress passed several tremendously important labor laws that essentially revolutionized labor forces. A minimum wage law was included, and helped to solidify the standings of unions in order to increase wages as a way to emphasize that higher wages would lead to higher productivity as well as prosperity. One of the most important laws passed was signed by Herbert Hoover in 1932, the Norris-LaGuardia Anti-Injunction Act, which declared nonunion employment agreements unenforceable in federal courts, granted labor organizations immunity from liability, and gave unions immunity from private damage suits (Reynolds, 2009.)
During World War II, unions experienced a rising prosperity, and between 1933 and 1945, the percentage of the workforce that was unionized went from 5.7% to 22.4%. Eventually that number declined, but in the 1950s union members represented more than 20% of the working population. However, in 1960 there was a steep decrease in union membership in the United States, having reached 30.9% in 1960 and dropping to 11.6% in 2007. The growth of membership has declined in the private sector but has risen in the public sector. Currently, for the first time in American history most union members work for the government instead of private employers; the long-held idea that union members are overwhelmingly blue-collar workers has fallen by the wayside, while among government workers union membership rose to 37.5% in 2009 (Greenhouse, 2010.)
The original philosophy of unions supported the concept that they were better able to bargain for higher wages and improved work conditions with more leverage than individuals would have (Sherk, 2006.) Rooted in the beliefs of Samuel Gompers, agreements between unions and employers resulted in peaceful relationships that were characterized by orderly production and a distribution of wealth. The ability of collective bargaining provided a truce that was intended to minimize or completely avoid conflict between the shareholders. Eventually, however, an inherent tension developed between the management of the unions, who were motivated to protect their positions, and the interests of the workforce. In the 1960s, the philosophy of unionism changed to a more radical version which originated in the civil rights revolts as well as opposition to the Vietnam War. This philosophy advocated open democracy in opposition to a closed political system, and advocacy of communicative speech as an alternative to technical problem solving (Fisk.) Another aspect of this version of unionism sought to develop union caucuses that would pursue union democracy as well as power, the purpose of which was to transform unions instead of creating breakaway groups. These caucuses were meant to reform unions and make them more successful in limiting capitalist demands. Another form of unionism was minority unionism, which was formed to avoid the barriers placed by corporations against union certification; these barriers only strengthened when international competition grew. This type of unionism allowed minority groups to protest against an employer while including most of the others in the workforce in their dissension.
The trend towards globalization has resulted in labor unions forming global union federations, which are groupings of unions from businesses involved in similar work. Their goal is to negotiate International Framework Agreements that typically include insisting on the labor rights contained in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, fair grievance standards, environmental protections, and nondiscrimination (Fisk.) It is believed that trade unions are more likely to survive and strengthen themselves by forming these affiliations across the globe rather than by addressing globalization as individual nations.
A few different union reforms that might be implemented in order to broaden their appeal to current workplace environments should be considered. The first would be to increase transparency of management activities because of the tremendous amount of corruption that is stereotypical of union officers. Many people believe that unions are corrupt, and certainly their records in the public eye have reinforced that image when so many union leaders have been accused of financial and political wrongdoing. The other reform would involve making visible efforts to prevent or minimize jobs being shipped overseas so that union members would feel that their representatives were acting on their behalf provide job security. The fact that so many jobs have been lost to foreign countries has made many American workers feel insecure about their jobs and angry about being displaced because of cheap labor that is only possible in Third World or underdeveloped countries. Union management could communicate on a regular basis either verbally or by newsletter about actions that they are taking to keep jobs in the United States. In addition, unions could also advocate for their membership by demonstrating that paying higher wages for American workers results in better craftsmanship and quality of products; this could be accomplished by comparing overseas versions of products like electronics with nearly identical products that are manufactured in the United States, and showing that paying a bit more for these products results in a superior item.
The weakening of unions recently undertaken by political factions in the United States has negatively impacted the American worker. By limiting bargaining rights, union members are vulnerable to wage freezes and declines, problematic work environments, and lack of protection of their jobs from being outsourced. The workforce benefits from a strong union presence.
- Fisk, M. (n.d.). The Influence of Philosophical Currents on Labor Unions. Retrieved from Milton Fisk: http://www.miltonfisk.org/writings-in-progress/the-influence-of-philosophical-currents-on-labor-unions/
- Greenhouse, S. (2010, January 22). Most US Union Members Are Working for the Government, New Data Shows. Retrieved from The New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/23/business/23labor.html?_r=0
- Labor History Timeline. (2013). Retrieved from AFL-CIO: http://www.aflcio.org/About/Our-History/Labor-History-Timeline
- Mayer, G. (2004, August 31). Union Membership Trends in the United States. Retrieved from Cornell University School of Industrial Labor Relations: http://digitalcommons.ilr.cornell.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1176&context=key_workplace
- Reynolds, M. (2009, July 17). A History of Labor Unions from Colonial Times to 2009. Retrieved from Ludvig Von Mises Institute: http://mises.org/daily/3553#part6
- Sherk, J. & Kane, T. (2006, August 29). Unions in Decline and under Review. Retrieved from The Heritage Foundation: http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2006/08/unions-in-decline-and-under-review
- The Continuing Assault on Unions. (2012, January 7). Retrieved from The New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/08/opinion/Sunday/continuing-assault-on-unions.html
