Paper Example Undergraduate 906 words

Labor Unions Are Communities of Workers Who

Last reviewed: October 7, 2013 ~5 min read
Abstract

Labor unions are communities of workers who have come together with the purpose of fighting for their rights as a unit. These respective workers typically want fair conditions, to work with persons of integrity, and want to have a peaceful relationship with their employers, as the latter have to act in agreement with a set of requirements in order for this relationship to be possible. With the National Labor Relations Act being into place, unions are practically encouraged to function and organizations are thus left with no alternative but to cooperate in order to be able to have access to the human resource.

Labor unions are communities of workers who have come together with the purpose of fighting for their rights as a unit. These respective workers typically want fair conditions, to work with persons of integrity, and want to have a peaceful relationship with their employers, as the latter have to act in agreement with a set of requirements in order for this relationship to be possible. With the National Labor Relations Act being into place, unions are practically encouraged to function and organizations are thus left with no alternative but to cooperate in order to be able to have access to the human resource.

Employees want to be effectively represented when dealing with the companies that hire them and this is facilitated by them becoming union members. Unionized labor is in many cases the key to improving working environments for employees, but it can also reflect negatively on organizations when considering that employers need to act in disagreement with many of their principles when dealing with unions. Collective bargaining agreements are one of the best methods to guarantee a solid relationship between a company and its underperforming employees, as these individuals practically acknowledge that they are being provided with a series of benefits and refrain from going after others.

Organizations are somewhat pressured by labor unions and are unable to reduce the number of positions they have available as a result of collaborating with such institutions. Labor unions require that the organizations they work with provide the same number of jobs and levels regardless of the circumstances, as companies practically have to maintain their number of jobs even if they come across significant economic troubles or if the general community is experiencing an economic crisis. Such events require special negotiations and organizations need to find methods to compensate for providing a lower number of jobs in case they take on such attitudes.

Organizational performance is likely to benefit as a result of employee relations strategies being implemented within a company. An organization's business strategy needs to address employee relations strategies in order for the company as a whole to experience progress. By concentrating on building stable and cooperative relationships with its employees, an organization reduces the risk of coming across conflicts.

Employees are also probable to be more committed to assisting the company as long as they are encouraged to get involved and as the communication process is effective. Employee relations strategies virtually make it possible for them to feel that there is a form of mutuality in their relationship with the company and that it is their ethical responsibility to act in agreement with the organization's goals.

To a certain degree, it is possible for problems to appear as a result of the organization focusing on implementing employee relations strategies. This can occur when the organization only concentrates on its personal interests and expects that the employees are simply going to cooperate. Workers can only emphasize the important role they play within the company as a result of refraining from collaborating.

Depending on the attitudes that a company puts across with regard to its employees, they are more or less likely to cooperate. Some companies prefer to take on an adversarial strategy by acting only based on their interests. Other companies are likely to accept to cooperate with a representative elected by its employees. A number of companies actually support their employees in getting actively involved in making important decisions and addressing organization policies.

Society has experienced much change during recent decades and while unions have preserved many of the attributes they held more than a century ago, matters are confusing with regard to the exact role they play in today's world. At a certain point in history unions actually supported numerous individuals in being able to have organizations respect their rights. However, it seems that unions have recently lost many of their initial values with the purpose of being able to maintain their position. The irony is that many unions have come to be well-managed organizations, practically coming to be exactly what union members despise the most.

The general idea is not necessarily that unions are no longer relevant, it is just that they are no longer relevant in the U.S. And in their current form. Other countries certainly need unions that can fight for the rights of workers, but the fact is that the U.S. is unlikely to improve as a whole as long as unions within the country fail to acknowledge that times have changed and that they need to restructure their strategies in order to actually be as effective as they have been in the past.

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References
3 sources cited in this paper
  • • Brooks, G. W., Estreicher, S., Katz, H. C., Kaufman, B. E. (2001). The internal governance and organizational effectiveness of labor unions: essays in honor of George Brooks. Kluwer Law International.
  • • Dessler, G. (2009). Fundamentals of human resource management: content, competencies, and applications. Pearson Education, Limited.
  • • Yates, M. (2009). Why Unions Matter. Monthly Review Press.
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PaperDue. (2013). Labor Unions Are Communities of Workers Who. PaperDue. https://paperdue.com/essay/labor-unions-are-communities-of-workers-124013

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