A union is an associated of workers that come together to collectively improve their wages and working conditions

Unions 101

A variety of workers have unions including factor workers, construction workers, bus drivers, nurses, teachers, student-workers, flight attendants, actors, and more.

In the private sector, most domestic workers, independent contractors, farm workers, supervisors, and managers are excluded from forming a union by labor law.

In the private-sector, the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) gives workers the explicit right to form a union and engage in collective bargaining. In the public-sector, union rights are determined at the state level.

What gives workers the right to form a union?

Union members pay dues because it funds organizing, pays for legal feeds, and makes the union stronger which can translate to higher wages and better protections at the bargaining table.

Unions are powerful but cannot function in an anti-union economy without financial support. This is why the &quot;right-to-work&quot; ideology has fought to defund unions so that workers do not have as much power in the workplace.

Union workers can collectively negotiate their wages and working conditions which means they generally have more benefits and higher wages than their non-union counterparts. Some of the benefits that union workers have include higher wages, protection from being fired for no reason, the right to a healthy and safe workplace, and protections from overwork. Being in a union also means that management cannot impose unilateral changes that affect working conditions. Overall, workers in a unionized workplace have more say and power.

&quot;Right to Work&quot; is the name for a policy designed to take away rights from working people. It is used under the guise of free speech, and proponents of this legislation say that it is to protect workers against being forced to join a union. Workers are already protected under the NLRA from being forced to join a union. The real purpose of this legislation is to tilt power toward big corporations to further rig the system at the expense of working families. 

As MLK said: &quot;In our glorious fight for civil rights, we must guard against being fooled by false slogans, such as &#039;right to work.&#039; It is a law to rob us of our civil rights and job rights. Its purpose is to destroy labor unions and collective bargaining...&quot;

Unions are run differently depending on the union, but most are ultimately democratic with members making the organization decisions. Most unions also elected leadership to deal with day-to-day operations.

Section 7 of the NLRA protects workers from being disciplined or fired for joining or supporting a union. Employers still attempt to fire workers for organizing but there are legal protections in place to fight against this.

Can workers be fired for joining a union or starting one?

Study with Quizlet and memorize flashcards containing terms like What is a union?, What kinds of workers have unions?, Who is excluded from forming a union? and more.

Unions 101 Flashcards

WelcomeBackModalStaticImages

LOTestMode

RecoverInitialAuctionGdprOnSetPage[default,subscriptions,ads]

DynamicBiddingFollowUp[default,ads]

ExCoOnSetPageV4[default,ads]

PrimisOnSetPageV4[default,ads]

LoginPageOnRenderer

AiVerifiedSetsV2[default,ads]

CampusPollsSchoolPredictionFeatureFlag

RemoveSetPageAdsInPH[default,ads]

ExCoOnExplanations[default,ads]

PrimisOnExplanations[default,ads]

WelcomeBackModalGifFallback

TestModeOnRenderer

IFrameNPlus1LoadingStrategy

ExamPageTopicFilter

EnableSetPageAdsInFRAndTR

WelcomeBackBTS2023HurricaneBannerFeatureFlag

PrebidOnSetPageV2[default,ads]

DisableA9Safari[default,ads]

PwtPrebidRollbackV4[default,ads]

DisableHeaderBiddingOnSlowerConnectionsV2[default,ads]

LiveRenderer

CampusPollsNonTargeted[default,growth,engagement,ads]

SetPageShareOptionsFalseDoorAA[default,growth,ads]

ParallelFetchSetRecommendations[default,experiment]

EnablePwtMfsOutstreamV2[default,ads]

OptimizeStudeyModeSignupExitPromptV2[default,growth,ads]

PriceTesting2023UsUsd[default,subscriptions]

NotesToValue

NotesToValueFranceGermanyV2

UseJSONForAdSizesV3[default,ads]

AdLightningPerfTest[default,ads]

NewSignupMainModalDesign[default,growth]

EnableIdentityLexiconV2[default,ads]

SendUSPDataToApsV4[default,ads]

PrismicRenderer

FCStudyDirection2[default,engagement,subscriptions,ads,study]

ExamPageReadBuckets

SetPageShowGamesHub

SEORemoveRecommendationsCarouselGlobalV2[default,ads]

LoggedOutHomepageRenderer[default,growth]

ExpertSolutionsRatingsOnSearchV2

StudentCompetitionPhase2

TermImageSearchChange[default,search]

QTubeVideosOnBlendedSearchResultsV2[default,search,ads]

SearchCopyRefresh[default,search,ads]

TermSearchRedesign[default,search,ads]

MagicNotesOnCreateMenuRedesign[default]

WhatsNewLinkInGlobalNav

MagicNotesProminenceOnGlobalNav[default,ads]

DisableFacebookSignup

FallbackFacebookToMagicLinkLogin

UseRecentSameSubjectSetRecommendations[default,ads]

DynamicBiddingHoldoutV4[default,ads]

MLPriceFlooringHoldout[default,ads]

AmazonPublisherAudienceV3[default,ads]

StudyModeAdsDurationV2[default,ads]

BlurredAnswerOnTop[default,subscriptions]

TextbookMetRobotsNoindexV2

GroupCheckoutRenderer[default,subscriptions]

InvoiceFormRenderer[default,subscriptions]

GroupOrderEnhancedHelp[default,subscriptions]

GroupOrderAllCurrencies[default,subscriptions]

InvoiceResultsRenderer[default,subscriptions]

GroupUpgradeRenderer[default,subscriptions]

LOHNewMarketingPageFRFR

LOHNewMarketingPageDE

MarketingUTMDirectToSub[default,subscriptions]

DynamicFlooringV6Train[default,ads]

SignupAssemblificationV4[default,growth]

ZuoraOutageFallback[default,subscriptions]

CreditActivationRenderer[default,subscriptions]

TeacherReferralsLanding[default,growth]

adsHoldOut_20180315

SurveyFakeDoor[default,growth]

TermToQAV2A[default,ads,subscriptions,growth,engagement]

WalkthroughVideos[default,growth,subscriptions,ads]

UpgradeRenderer[default,subscriptions]

UseModelIdStringForSetsRatings

FlashcardsRenderer[default,ads]

ImproveMwebStickyAdPerf[default,ads]

TopCreatorLabel[default,engagement,growth,ads]

PopCultureSetMashups[default,engagement,growth,ads]

SetSearchAlgoV3[default,search]

MiniFCEventHandlerFID

StudyPathPageOnRenderer

PrintPageOnRenderer

NoLoSharedProgressMinifcV1[default,ads,subscriptions]

SsrMoreTermsOnSetPage[default,ads]

GroupOrdersManagerLaunch

ProfilePageOnRenderer

FolderPrintPageOnRenderer

CreateSetPageOnRenderer

MagiclinkMiddlePageOnRenderer

ConfirmEmailFlowOnRenderer

SettingsPageOnRenderer

ShouldQueryTopCreatorData[default,growth]

GroupOrderManagerUsersOnLegacyOrders

CopyABTestModesCardsSignupTitleekNma

Renderer/index