Labor unions primarily work by bargaining to negotiate with business owners about pay and working conditions. Today, labor unions can negotiate working hours, wages, vacation time, and even job responsibilities.

Pros and Cons for Employees:
Labor unions can have both advantages and disadvantages for employees. The advantages can include job security, improved compensation and benefits, a sense of workplace democracy, and training and development opportunities. The disadvantages can include paying union dues, reducing flexibility due to standardized rules and procedures, and the resistance to change to new technologies by the union.

Pros and Cons for Employers:
Like employees, employers can experience advantages and disadvantages associated with labow unions but the impact on employers can vary depending on factors such as industry and company size. The advantages can include stable labor relations, increased job satisfaction and workforce productivity, and higher levels of employee loyalty and commitment. The disadvantages can include increased costs for labor, the possibility of strikes or work stoppages causing financial loss, and loss of management control.

Pros and Cons for Society:
Labor unions can have significant effects on society as a whole and can influence economic and social dynamics. The advantages can include safer workplaces and better standards for all workers, reducing income inequalities and ensuring that workers receive a fair share of economic success, and economic stimulus by higher wages contributing to increase consumer spending. The disadvantages on society include potentially inefficiencies in the market due to unions limiting companies’ quick adaptability to market changes, job loss in competative industries, and increased costs for good and services due to higher wages and benefits.

Personal Story and Opinion:
One of my friends is currently a union member and has had both good experiences and bad experiences. Overall, she said her experiences have been good and her union has make some changes including wage increases, however, she said being in a union is a lot of work and is tiring at times. She attends union meets and conferences multiple times a month and she mentioned that there is tension in her office from time to time between the union workers and non-union workers.

After reviewing the lecture materials, doing research, and speaking with my friend, I would not consider joining a union. The two main reasons I wouldn’t join a union are the union costs and that I prefer to negotiate my own terms with my employers. However, I do support some aspects of unionization including fair wages and improved working conditions, so I am not completely against it, but I am more impartial about unions than in support of them.

References:

https://www.epi.org/publication/unions-and-well-being/ https://online.maryville.edu/blog/pros-and-cons-of-unions/

https://www.hrexchangenetwork.com/hr-compensation-benefits/articles/pros-and-cons-of-labor-unions

https://online.maryville.edu/blog/pros-and-cons-of-unions/