It has been estimated that there are around 400 million trade-union members worldwide. A third of the tradeunion members live in China, although countries such as Brazil, Russia, and Ukraine are also very highly unionized.

Unionization rates differ widely, from 11 percent in the United States, to 25 percent in the United Kingdom, and over 50 percent in Norway. The average for OECD members is around 17 percent. Why do you think that trade union memberships differ so widely across the world? Investigate your country’s unionization rates and compare them to those of a neighboring country. What do the rates tell you about the nature of employment? How has it impacted labor relations, pay, and work-conditions?

Be prepared to share your answers to these questions with the class.