Labor Unions

Some of the benefits to labor unions is that they have the ability to collectively bargain. This allows them to negotiate things like better wages, benefits and what kind of working conditions they will work in. The ability to collectively bargain gives them more ability to establish these standards and achieve them. Another benefit of unions is they have more worker protection. This protects things like safety standards, protects against unfair treatment and aid in enforcing labor laws in the area. This also has additional benefits that will address issues like discrimination, harassment and wrongful termination. Another thing that makes unions attractive is the types of compensations and benefits they receive. The ability they have to collectively negotiate helps with this tremendously, they are able to get higher wages, better healthcare and retirement plans compared to their counter parts that are not apart of a union. These are some of the reasons that people look to join a union, because they help fix the issues that they may be experiencing from their past jobs and they get more of a fair share by joining a union. But some of the cons in joining a union is that because they ask for higher wages, their employers may not have the means to support it. And in return they will lay people off in order to meet the higher wage requirements. Another downside in joining a union is strikes, this leads to financial losses for both parties involved and most likely will affect the employee more than the employer. Personally I’m not sure if I would join a union. I see the benefits of being in one but I can also see the downside of not being able to work because of downsizing and strikes. I would most likely start off out of a union at first and if what I’m looking for isn’t met then I would join a union. That way I can hopefully see the best of both worlds first hand and after that make an informed decision of wether or not I would like to be in one.