The fall (and rise?) of unions in the US
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We answered a viewer’s question about the decline of unionization. Subscribe and turn on notifications 🔔 so you don't miss any videos: http://goo.gl/0bsAjO 📣 If the news feels chaotic to you these days, you're not alone. We want to answer your biggest questions about what's happening in the world today via our new video format: https://forms.gle/Mgp2oqa3gr8tNw1M7 📣 “How come we’ve seen such a decline in unionization in the US?” That’s the question we received from one of our viewers, Cameron when we put out a call for topics to explain. It comes at an interesting time. Earlier this year, the Amazon Labor Union won its first election at a large warehouse in New York, and more than 200 Starbucks locations have voted to unionize since baristas in Buffalo broke the seal in December 2021. The National Labor Relations Board reports that petitions for union elections are up 56 percent this year compared to 2021. This level of energy and momentum in the labor movement is remarkable in light of the long, steep decline in union membership rates since the 1950s. Social science has limited tools for establishing what caused that decline, and different experts tend to emphasize different factors. But in the video above, we dig into a few key drivers of low union density in the US relative to other wealthy countries. Sources: Barry Eidlin, Labor and the Class Idea in the United States and Canada https://barryeidlin.org/theclassidea/ Nelson Lichtenstein, State of the Union https://press.princeton.edu/books/paperback/9780691160276/state-of-the-union Zachary Schaller, “Decomposing the Decline of Unions: Revisiting Sectoral and Regional Shifts” https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/00197939221101555?journalCode=ilra& OECD, “Collective bargaining systems and workers’ voice arrangements in OECD countries” https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/sites/a6ebacb7-en/index.html?itemId=/content/component/a6ebacb7-en Barry T. Hirsch and David A. Macpherson https://unionstats.com/ Bloomberg Law https://news.bloomberglaw.com/daily-labor-report/punching-in-pandemic-union-election-surge-hits-trump-era-rules-28 https://news.bloomberglaw.com/bloomberg-law-analysis/analysis-how-long-does-it-take-unions-to-reach-first-contracts Economic Policy Institute https://www.epi.org/unequalpower/publications/private-sector-unions-corporate-legal-erosion/ Gallup https://news.gallup.com/poll/12751/labor-unions.aspx Thomas Kochan et al “Worker Voice in America: Is There a Gap between What Workers Expect and What They Experience?” https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0019793918806250 Alejandro Reuss, “What’s Behind Union Decline in the United States?” https://dollarsandsense.org/archives/2011/0311reuss2.html Henry Farber, Bruce Western, Accounting for the Decline of Unions in the Private Sector, 1973-1998, https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12122-001-1017-8 G. William Domhoff, “The Rise and Fall of Labor Unions In The U.S.” https://whorulesamerica.ucsc.edu/power/history_of_labor_unions.html Michael Goldfield and Amy Bromsen, “The Changing Landscape of US Unions in Historical and Theoretical Perspective” https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/10.1146/annurev-polisci-032211-214003 Make sure you never miss behind-the-scenes content in the Vox Video newsletter, sign up here: http://vox.com/video-newsletter Vox.com is a news website that helps you cut through the noise and understand what's really driving the events in the headlines. Check out http://www.vox.com Support Vox's reporting with a one-time or recurring contribution: http://vox.com/contribute-now Shop the Vox merch store: http://vox.com/store Watch our full video catalog: http://goo.gl/IZONyE Follow Vox on Facebook: http://facebook.com/vox Follow Vox on Twitter: http://twitter.com/voxdotcom Follow Vox on TikTok: http://tiktok.com/@voxdotcom
  • @Gregorech
    3•11 months ago

    The problem I’ve seen with unions is, they started acting like the corporation they fought against. When I was a kid my dad was in the grocery union it negotiated a salary and some benefits others, like Healthcare, were part of your dues. When your dues did nothing but cover the salary of the union bosses it became a problem.

    • ProdigalFrogOPEnglish
      6•11 months ago

      Unions are like any democracy: they only function if the voters are engaged and proactive. If they become complacent, they will stop working.

      The price of freedom (and fair wages and working conditions) is eternal vigilance.

  • @[email protected]English
    1•11 months ago

    There is one thing I’ve never been clear with unions. Is there a minimum company size (perceived or real) that defines their usefulness? Like, as an extreme example, if 3 people made a company in their garage, I feel a union is overkill (tell me I’m wrong), but if that company grew to 10 people…is it suddenly realistic? What about 15? 20? 100?

    Like, I work for a small startup and don’t feel a union is a pressing need, but I’ve always wondered if that’s the propaganda working or something more intrinsic to how a union is defined/finds purpose

    • @[email protected]
      7•11 months ago

      It’s 100% propaganda working. Your little shop can join a larger union. The entire premise is to “be stronger, together”.

      • @[email protected]
        4•11 months ago

        I don’t know if this is right but joining before the company is big enough to really have that much leverage over you seems like a better idea than waiting until it’s bigger. You also never know when the company is going to change, even if they are treating your well right now.

    • @triptrapper
      1•9 months ago

      I’m not an expert but I have spent several years organizing in my field. Legally it only takes 2 workers to form a bargaining unit. It’s normal to see a union as unnecessary when you’re satisfied with your working conditions. Unfortunately without a union there’s nothing protecting those benefits you enjoy, and they’re often the first thing employers target when they’re looking to cut costs. Without a union your employer has no obligation to consult with you before, for example, switching to a cheaper health insurance or freezing bonuses.

      A union contract lets you decide which issues you want to weigh in on. Don’t mind working holidays? Leave it out of the contract. Want regular raises? Put it in the contract.

      Contrary to popular belief, you won’t pay any dues until you have a contract that you feel is worth what you’re paying. Sometimes people say, “I paid dues but the union never did anything for me.” Nearly every time I’ve heard this the person A. worked in a union that’s been around for a long time, and negotiated major improvements before they started the job, and/or B. did not actively participate by attending meetings or voting on contracts. It’s like saying, “I didn’t vote in my local elections, and the city council never did anything for me.”

      Of course there’s incompetence and corruption, just like in government, but I rarely hear people argue that the solution to government corruption is to stop having elections. Unions are literally the only reliable way for workers to improve their working conditions.