The New American Farmer Analysis

LEWIN, D., KEEFE, J. H., & KOCHAN, T. A. (2012). THE NEW GREAT DEBATE ABOUT UNIONISM AND COLLECTIVE BARGAINING IN U.S. STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS. ILR Review, 65(4), 749-778 Retrieved from https://web-b-ebscohost-com.bethelu.idm.oclc.org/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=4&sid=71a03270-ad95-41f9-a574-414b59891617%40sessionmgr103&hid=101

22. Which of the following labor organizations endorsed the philosophy of “bread and butter” unionism by concentrating on demands for higher wages, shorter hours, and improved working conditions?

Initially, the intent of labor unions was for employed workers to meet together and collectively agree on fundamental workplace objectives and goals. The rise of the union came about after the Civil War, in the United States- responding to the industrial economy boom. Following the war, labor unions finally reached public popularity within the 1930-1950’s, and then again began to slowly decrease, through the 1960’s and on to today’s times. Although, the popularity of labor unions has decreased, its importance remains to be evident with politics, journalism, auto, and the public education industries.

The role of unions and their importance has changed over the years. A mixture of poor wages, high unemployment, non-existent benefits and insignificant professional stability amongst the more youthful era makes a ready demographic for restoration. The younger era is the slightest unionized section of our general public today by a long shot. Unions are important in today’s society because checks and balances are necessary entities in business and government, so if CEOs are just focusing on themselves and profits, unions are a necessary check to all that corporate power. Today and in the future, labor unions will continue to play an important role in our country 's work force and the quality of life for working families.

The past 30 years have been gloomy ones for the labor movement. In the American private sector trade-union membership has fallen from a third in 1979 to just 7% today. There is an exception to this story of decline: public unions in America has strengthened over the same period from 11% to 36%. There are now more American workers in unions in the public sector (7.6m) than in the private sector (7.1m), although the private sector employs five times as many people. This private-public move has changed the trade union movement. In the 1950s unions were steady working class, men who had left school at 16 and inclined to go left on economics but right on social issues. Today they are much more middle-class: more than a quarter of American unionists

The American labor union has failed in its duty to protect the employees. Currently, most of the public unions agree to the plan that every worthy benefit or wage ought to be balanced by the union’s special consideration like agreeing to a two-tier salary scale, surrendering some hours, raised copays or even deductibles for medical procedures. However, these associations have done little to fight for the workers when they are faced with salary reductions, poor pays, unwarranted cutbacks and when they are denied compensation for retirements or injuries. According to Aronowitz, the US labor movement has continued to deteriorate and lacks the voice it had some times ago. By 1990s, the labor had already decreased in intensity from the higher 35 percent membership in 1953. This is just an indication that workers have no hopes in the then merged AFL-CIO (American Federation Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations) who sought to democratize the labor movement. Their so-mediated organizing model that aimed at expanding the membership was a change of the core role of the previous service model of unionism that focused on petitioning for the members’ requests. Where the distresses may have begun earlier in the 1970s, it was not until the era of Ronald Reagan that the impact was felt. Since then, members of the labor unions have turned to be mere clients. The restructuring of the economy through technological change, and company merges, so millions of workers lose jobs. However, the

As I got older, the knowledge that my father negotiated with his very own employers in order to ensure that his coworkers would also reap the benefits the entire union fought for affected me on personal a level; to know that the man who drove me to school and bought for me school supplies each year also carried a responsibility to his co-workers made me rather proud. However, despite the fact that I grew up the daughter of a Union Steward, I also grew up as a teenager in today’s society: one that no longer suffers from such rampant corruption that induced misfortunes such as illegal instances of child labor: a calamity also solved by a committee aiming to better working standards. My view of labor has always been through rose-tinted glasses thanks to modern times; I really only knew of the exploits that my father had experienced from what he told me, forms recounting various union related news lying in heaps on the dinner table, and snippets on the news or the lightly-touched upon topics in my Consumer’s Education

Workers in the United States now have rights that protect them from the abuses of the past. According to Pamela M. Prah, a veteran reporter for CQ Researcher, “Unions were created in an era before employment laws required safe working conditions, a minimum wage, unemployment benefits or protections against discrimination”(713). Employers are now required to have a list of workers rights accessible to all of its employees, and if an employer violates any worker protected right they are subject to fines and penalties. Unions have been an influential part of society during the later part of the nineteenth century and throughout the twentieth

The labor union movement over the years has shaped the way individuals work and live for both the nicest and unpleasant. Some would think the unions influence has created a power struggle between management and union leaders. In today’s time, some citizens insist the existence of unions are a must to aid in employee freedom, while others view the labor unions as just another problem in the line of progress. The purpose of labor unions was for employed workers to come together and collectively agree on fundamental workplace objectives. The rise of the union came about after the Civil War- responding to the industrial economy. Surprisingly at the least unions became popular within the 1930-50’s and began to slowly decrease,

I concur with the author’s findings. Burnett (2015) explained that “organized labor should reinvent itself – much like companies and workers have – with a new mission that focuses on providing an array of services that reflect the rapidly evolving needs of workers and, yes, the companies that employ them”. In my mind, workers who pay their union dues deserve a lot more than what they are currently getting. Old unions must rebuild themselves and continue to fight for the average American worker. Dressler (2015) asserted that unions must learn to be more aggressive in pushing Congress to pass certain labor laws, be proactive to elect competent union officials, and expand union membership through global campaigns.

Western, B., & Rosenfeld, J. (2011). Unions, norms, and the rise in US wage inequality. American Sociological Review, 76(4), 513-537.

At first we need to know what labor unions are. They are organizations that will be and act like the voice of all their members in their labor market. Their sole purpose is to allow their members to be allowed to bargain collectively with any workplace mischief. The thing is that it is getting harder and harder for employees to even have the opportunity to join these democracy-seeking organizations. “Currently, only about 9 percent of employees in the private sector have joined or are members to a trade union.” (Epstein, 2009) When it comes to this small amount it is because of two things and they are that the employers would threaten all their workers about joining these organizations and with all the new existing laws that are

Women’s movements across the globe, notably among the Western nations, are part of the international social movements which brought about major changes to the lives of many women in the United States, Canada and most other parts of the Western world. This is, because these movements opened women to professions and blue-collar jobs that previously had been reserved for men exclusively. The heyday of the women’s movement was in the late 1960s and early 1970s. In this essay, the struggle for change among women in the union movement will be examined. While treating this topic, the broad changes have taken place in work and employment since the 1970s and how this impact the relationship between women and unions shall be thoroughly investigated.

Comfortable working conditions, paid vacations, maternity leave, protection from employer discrimination, and higher than equilibrium wages for less work than an employee would normally do, and smaller probability of being fired for wrong doing. Along with these aspects discounts for phone, TV service, and many other vouchers for consumer goods also included. These examples and many more are what a typical modern labor union brings to employees who join the club or umm…union. With all these positive aspect marketed by labor unions, one has to think at what cost. After all there is no such thing as a free lunch. This paper analyzes the topic of labor unions focusing on the advantages and disadvantages of them.

“Robert Tobias (2010) argues that to be effective, human resource managers need to embrace the possibility of positive and productive relations with labor unions.” (Riccucci pg. 10-11)