Do Unions still serve a purpose today?

middlegroundamerica
Sep 10, 2015
5 min read

The argument seems to come around every year. Are unions good or bad for the economy? Should unions continue to exist or should "Right to Work" become the standard?

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Jimmy D: My argument centers around John Dalberg-Acton’s “Power tends to corrupt.” You can’t trust the men or women in power. Money makes the world go around and powerful businessmen hold the financial future of their employees in the palms of their hands. In politics, we can vote them out. In the world of business, we can’t. Employees, should have some say and unions provide that. The conditions that gave birth to unions are not important. Many labor laws protect people from those practices. However, there is one major irrefutable condition that still exists. Man (or woman), as a whole, cannot be trusted. Unfortunately, we are a selfish species and a selfish-powerful man, should be held accountable. You see, happy employees don’t complain about needing a union. Unhappy employees do. Now, according to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, the number of union workers in 2014 hovered around 14.6 million (11.1% down 0.2% in 2013). In 1983, the union membership rate was 20.1 percent, and there were 17.7 million union workers. (1) The public sector maintained a rate of 35.7% compared to 6.6% of private-sector workers. In short, that means unions are a dying breed. But they continue to exist where they are needed. Take a Corrections Officer for instance. They are typically forced to join a union. At first, this isn’t something I agree with. Forced?! Most people don’t until the facts are provided. COs are underpaid. That same BLS report states: In 2014, union members had median weekly earnings of $970, while non-union members had median weekly earnings of $763. $207 a week is the cost of a union. Ronnie R: Today's society is littered with the skeletons of underperforming companies that treated their employees like garbage. First, the laws designed to protect the employee. ADA, USERRA, FMLA, FLSA, OSH, just to name a few. (2) Second, the agencies that protect workers. EEOC, PHLRB, EEOC, OSHA, again to name only a few. (3) Finally, there is another even more powerful tool that works as a double edge sword for a lot of companies, social media. With the advent of social media companies can no longer hide. I have had personal experience of this. I 'stole' so many awesome employees from the Friday's down the street because it was run by a bunch of terrible managers. They were down 35% year over year in same store sales. Now three years later they do only 40% of the business they used too. The employees didn't need a union, they came and worked for me. Point is, poorly run companies manage themselves out of business. If a company doesn't treat their people right they will lose them and not be able to attract talent. As for higher wages, yes the average income is 207 a week higher but how much is paid back in dues? What happens to the money you paid in dues? Do you have a say in it? No you don't. What if the union goes on strike? You have no say. What if the union backs a political figure you don't like? Too bad. Finally, yes they are often mandatory which is the modern day equivalent of indentured servitude. Jimmy D: Social media has made it impossible to hide and poorly run companies run themselves out of business. Private companies have no choice but to be managed properly or fail. But the issues of unions are so much more a public sector issue than a private sector issue. (See my first post) Do you have a say where your dues go? Yes. Vote during your union's election. The people who run the union are well organized and do house calls if needed. If a union goes on strike, do you have a say? No. But that is the cost of unity. Backing political figures you don't like? No...and Yes. Vote how you want “behind the curtain.” Are unions perfect? Absolutely NOT. But they serve a purpose where they are needed. Again, happy employees never form a union. Ronnie R: Except for the fact that often times voting is done publicly and all kinds of voter intimidation goes on. Anytime the idea of secret ballots comes up, all hell breaks loose. (2). The 'elections' are 'overseen' by thugs, excuse me, 'organizers'. As for public sector unions, especially federal, the corruption is astronomical. (3) which adds to the uncountable government waste and abuse of taxpayer dollars. (Do I even need to source that?) Your right happy employees don't form unions. Many of the companies on the annual 'best places to work' aren't unionized and they don't need to be because unions are no longer needed. Jimmy D: Public Voting is not as prevalent as you represent. The law (LMDRA) requires the ballots to be secret. (4) Now are all unions going to follow that? I can't speak for all of them....But the one’s I know of are secret. And even though you pointed out some of the corruption in public sector unions, I'd venture to guess that most of them try to follow laws as much as possible. For now, I will touch on my first point. You can't trust powerful men/women. Be it the CEO or the Union President. Some businesses need these checks and balances. I don't see this as big an issue as some politicians make it. Concession: I will concede that many Unions are not perfect and there needs to be real accountability within their construct. Much like the NFL, the CEO and the Union President have to be able to trust each other. Non-Concession: Unions still have their place in the workforce today. You can't just do away with them. Many businesses still rely on these constructs. I would filibuster a bill that proposed outlawing them. Proposed Action: Do nothing. The numbers show that Unions are on the way out. The reason for their existence today is not the same reason they were created. Businesses/Public Sector Officials that need Unions maintain them to the best of their ability and follow the law. Ronnie R: Concession: Unions can serve in a decreased capacity where oversight is limited. Specifically in pro sports. Non concession: Unions need to be held accountable. It also should not be mandatory for employment to join the union. Proposed action: We do nothing. Unions are putting themselves out of business. Personal preference would be enactment of right to work in all 50 states. Employees should not be forced to join a union as a prerequisite to employment. MIDDLE GROUND: Unions can continue to function today in their limited capacity. Unions exist where they must and are legally allowed to form and function where they are needed. While Right to Work continues to grow in popularity with the States, we maintain it to be a State issue and NOT a Federal issue. We agree that unions are on the decline and maintain that no federal action in any form should be lent to sustain them should the free market evolve beyond the need for them. References: