Why Do Employees Vote For a Union? In Unit # 1 we read about and discussed the typical reasons why employees may want to have a Union represent them. According to our text (pages 9-10), "employees are more likely to vote for unions due to dissatisfaction with employment conditions rather than job task characteristics. Dissatisfaction with job security, economics, and supervisory practices were most predictive of a pro-union vote ..." Other predictive conditions include, poor supervision, co-worker conflict, amount of work required, lack of advancement, bad feelings about the company, physical surroundings and the nature of the work." "Two conditions have to exist to predict organizing attempts and a union win." Employees have to be dissatisfied and believe they are individually unable to influence a change in the conditions causing their dissatisfaction, and A majority of employees have to believe that collective bargaining would improve conditions more than changing jobs and that its benefits outweigh the costs. Dissatisfaction Today The first condition for unionization is "dissatisfaction" and we've learned from our reading that it's typically not the actual work or tasks being performed that's making workers dissatisfied. That's good because the tasks or work processes on-the-job may be difficult to do anything about! Let's dig deeper into dissatisfaction on-the-job. Some believe that labor conditions, pay, overtime and safety are no longer the primary issues for workers today. Many believe that the roots of worker dissatisfaction is dramatically different from previous generations. According to the consulting firm Pathways to Leadership, Inc., "throughout history, the working class has waged heroic struggles for better wages, human dignity, and a greater voice in the workplace. But for this generation, and much of today's workforce, the historic labor complaints of long hours, unsafe conditions and low pay, have given way to frustration with glassceilings, poor leadership, lack of tolerance for self-expression and generally feeling undervalued for their contributions. This trend of 'self' over 'company' is catching traditional employers (and Unions for that matter) unprepared and ill-equipped to manage an often restless and frustrated workforce." 'We have undergone wholesale changes in a generation,' says Steven Vannoy, CEO of Pathways to Leadership Inc. and co-author of the book Stomp the Elephant in the Office (2008, Wister & Willows). 'While our parents and grandparents were the beneficiaries of the early-century labor struggles, many of them felt fortunate to have a good job and spent their careers working for the same employer. Today's workers don't have the same mentality and expect more from their chosen vocations.' " "Vannoy notes that American workers have grown up in a culture offering tremendous personal freedoms and a voice in almost every aspect of their lives - except the workplace. 'They won't hesitate to leave for greener pastures if they feel undervalued, disrespected or unfulfilled,' asserts Vannoy. 'Or, worse yet,' he offers, 'they won't leave at all, and instead will take out their frustration on customers.' "Surveys show that worker dissatisfaction in America is at record levels and increasing. So why are other countries not facing the same challenges of motivating and retaining both management and rank-and-file workers? 'Just blame our culture,' says Craig Ross, Pathways President and co-author of Stomp the Elephant in the Office." 'The problem,' Ross explains, 'is that American workers bring phenomenal skills, experience, perspective and creativity to the workplace, but those qualities are rarely acknowledged or nurtured by managers. Employee frustration is bleeding over into their attitudes and actions in the workplace.' " Traditional Management and Union perspectives and experience may well be ill-prepared to see, understand and address these new roots of worker dissatisfaction. Who is Best Able To Address Today's Dissatisfaction Management or Union? The second condition for workers to opt for a Union is the belief that they are powerless and that the Union can actually deliver the change and hope that dissatisfied workers seek. In a June 25, 2010 article in Business Week, entitled Managing Employee Satisfaction in the Workplace: Stop using the recession as an excuse for ignoring low morale among the workers who report to you by John Baldoni, the author cited new studies by the Hay Group and the Corporate Leadership Council, that say that employees are getting fed up. Factors include overwork, underpayment, and under-appreciation. As a result, as many as six in 10 are looking to exit, according to the Hay Group. Some 85 percent of those not looking are staying still because the job market remains weak. What does John Baldoni suggest to address today's dissatisfaction? Make Work More Meaningful! Solutions are not easy. Yes, recognition and incentive programs work, but too often such programs address symptoms rather than the root causes of worker dissatisfaction. They serve as proverbial Band-Aids for deep-seated malaise. If work has little meaning, incentivized solutions are ends unto themselves, not means to an end: a more fulfilling workplace. Making work meaningful is no simple matter and frankly is beyond the responsibility of most managers. After all, businesses hire managers to get the work done, not make work enjoyable. Finding purpose in work is an individual pursuit, but in my experience I have found good examples of how managers do create higher levels of buy-in and thereby do make the work experience more tolerable. Here are some suggestions. Address the situation. The worst thing managers who suspect worker dissatisfaction can do is to ignore it, although that is the time-honored tradition. Avoiding the topic does not make it go way. Find ways to raise the issue at staff meetings. The blunt approach"So what's wrong?"may not work. People will likely clam up. But if you are clever and talk about the issue and perhaps voice your own dissatisfaction with the situation, you may have better luck. Make it safe for employees to talk about workplace dissatisfiers. Often they are simple things: input into scheduling, flexibility in work hours, or even something employees can make happen themselves, such as cleaner break rooms. Encourage alternatives. Find ways you can improve the situations. Take the lead in addressing employee complaints. Over the longer term, the best way is to let workers figure things out for themselves. Challenge employees to come up with ideas for making improvements, either in job design or in job process. Look for ways to remove the drudge factor in favor of the value add. Replace make-work projects with make-it-work projects. Show outcomes. Relate what your team does to what the company does. Say you work in purchasing: Find ways to link your striving for best-value, best-cost suppliers with improvedquality products. Make the link between improved quality and customer satisfaction. Such things would not have happened if purchasing had not done its job. Some companies introduce employees to customers when possible. Then employees see their products or services in use. That's a great way to encourage meaning in the workplace. Putting meaning into work is not a managerial responsibility; it falls to the employee to find work that matters to him or herself. And when employees sign on to do a job, they have a responsibility to perform it. Yes, in times of scarcity, as we are enduring now, compensation may be less competitive and opportunities for advancement less available, but workers must do the jobs employers pay them to do. Obvious, yes, but as studies show, many employees remain disgruntled. Simply acknowledging trouble in the workplace is a good first step. It creates an atmosphere of honesty. There is always a risk that people will reveal too much dissatisfaction, but when the manager makes it safe to offer up concerns and provides avenues of redress, workers can feel they are part of a solution rather than part of a problem. And maybe that's all that can happen in the short term. If so, acknowledge it and make the best of it. There are far too many people out of work who would readily switch places with you or your employees. You be the judge -- are Labor Unions able to make work more meaningful? Making the Best of a Unionized Work Environment As our text author Fossum says on page 127, "most people who are union members joined (or became represented by a Union) after being hired by a unionized employer." If the workplace is in a "Right to Work" state they don't have to join the Union and pay dues, but they are a member of the collective bargaining unit never the less. So really very few Union represented workers are ever called upon to vote in an NLRB election for or against being represented. So what is the mindset or commitment of Union members toward their Unionized Work Environment? One measure of Union commitment is how interested and willing they are to participate in union activities. Table 5.2 in your text, slots Union members into 5 commitment categories, as follows: 22% Reluctant Members - "I would only be a member because I have to be." 30% Card Carriers - " I don't mind being a member, but I don't want to get involved" 26% Selective Activists - " I am active on selective issues" 15% Apolitical Stalwarts - "I am loyal and active, but not interested in socialism." 7% Ideological Activists - "Active and see as extension of my political beliefs." This study suggests that more than half of Union members are not really highly committed and don't want to participate in Union activities. Fewer than a quarter of the members appear to be highly committed, and the remaining quarter will step-up selectively and support an issue that interests them. Our text also suggests that there is correlation between job dissatisfaction and interest in and commitment to Union activities. "Union activists tend to be less satisfied with their employment (page 134)." And, "job satisfaction predicts commitment to the employer (page 136)." Union Political Activities According to the AFL-CIO website (http://www.aflcio.org/aboutus/thisistheaflcio/mission/ ) one of the principle missions of the U.S. Labor Movement is as follows: "We will build a strong political voice for workers in our nation. We will fight for an agenda for working families at all levels of government. We will empower state federations. We will build a broad progressive coalition that speaks out for social and economic justice. We will create a political force within the labor movement that will empower workers and speak forcefully on the public issues that affect our lives." In February 24, 2005, the AFL-CIO leadership in a strategic planning session entitled "AFL-CIO - 'A More Effective and Unified Force',\" (http://www.aflcio.org/aboutus/ourfuture/upload/combined.pdf ) the following statement of priority was documented: Core Functions of the AFL-CIO We agreed that the first step toward change is to identify the core functions of the Federation, recognizing that at this critical time we must focus all its resources on them. The top priority is political action and legislation; the goal is to build our ability to win crucial elections, which we recognize can only be done by building strength from the bottom up. Political action is our greatest opportunity to impact health care, trade, or the right to organize. In fact, organizing and political action are inextricably linked. Today, the battle to preserve collective bargaining rights is a political battle, fought out at the NLRB, in Missouri, and in Indiana. And expanding collective bargaining in \"red\" states depends on successful political action, which should be part of the overall plan. In the AFL-CIO's FAQ section of their public website, they answer the following questions about political activity for public consumption (http://www.aflcio.org/aboutus/faq/ ): What are the AFL-CIO's legislative or policy priorities? The AFL-CIO educates union members about issues that affect the daily lives of working families, and encourages them to make their voice heard for a government that works for working families. We make sure members have the latest union facts and news on workers' rights. Our priorities include: Creating family-supporting jobs by investing tax dollars in schools, roads, bridges and airports; Improving the lives of workers through education, job training and raising the minimum wage; Keeping good jobs at home by reforming trade rules, Re-industrializing the U.S. economy and redoubling efforts at worker protections in the global economy; Strengthening Social Security and private pensions; Making high-quality, affordable health care available to everyone; and Holding corporations more accountable for their actions. What is the AFL-CIO's political program? The AFL-CIO and affiliate unions mobilize union members at the grassroots level. We encourage union members to register to vote. We also research working families' concerns about current issues, and put together information showing where candidates for all levels of elected office stand on those issues. Through networks of volunteers and activists, we get the word out to union members across the country about the political and union facts they need to make informed decisions in the voting booth. The AFL-CIO also offers training for union members who want to become more involved in political life by running for office themselves. How is union political action paid for? Partisan political activities are paid for by voluntary donations from union members. Do unions tell their members how to vote? Many national unions, central labor councils and state federations as well as the AFL-CIOendorse candidates for office and let their members know why they believe the endorsed candidates would do the best job for working families. But no one can tell union members how to votethat's up to each individual. Union Organizing Campaigns According to the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (UE), a national independent union (not affiliated with the AFL-CIO) representing some 35,000 workers in a wide variety of manufacturing, public sector and private non-profit sector jobs, there are 5 steps to successful Union organizing, as follows (http://www.ueunion.org/org_steps.html): Step 1: Build an Organizing Committee -- at this step basic information about the workplace must be gathered including: workplace structure: departments, work areas, jobs, shifts employee information: name, address, phone, shift, job title, and department for each worker (employee list) employer information: other locations, parent company, product(s), customers, union history Step 2: Adopt An Issues Program -- here the committee develops a program of union demands (the improvements you are organizing to achieve) and a strategy for the union election campaign. A plan for highlighting the issues program in the workplace is carried out through various organizing campaign activities. Step 3: Sign-Up Majority on Union Cards -- here your co-workers are asked to join UE and support the union program by signing membership cards. The goal is to sign-up a sizable majority. This "card campaign" should proceed quickly once begun and is necessary to hold a union election. Step 4: Win the Union Election -- The signed cards are used (and required) to petition the state or federal labor board to hold an election. It will take the labor board at least several weeks to determine who is eligible to vote and schedule the election. The union campaign must continue and intensify during the wait. If the union wins, the employer must recognize and bargain with the union. Winning a union election not only requires a strong, diverse organizing committee and a solid issues program, but there must also be a plan to fight the employer's anti-union campaign. Step 5: Negotiate a Contract -- The organizing campaign does not let up after an election victory. The real goal of the campaign, a union contract (the document the union and the employer negotiate and sign, covering everything from wages to how disputes will be handled), is still to be achieved. Workers must be mobilized to support the union's contract demands (decided by you and your co-workers) and pressure the employer to meet them. Management Union Avoidance Campaigns As we indicated in Unit # 1, if an employer believes that their employees are better off without a Union he or she must not sit by passively when an attempt is made by a Union to organize its employees. The best way to defeat the campaign is to make unionization unnecessary to the employees in the first place. However, if a Union knocks at your door, be ready to fight! Unions normally enter a workplace by promising the employees that they will be able to get them better terms and conditions of employment and, most importantly, that they will be there to help them with their economic and non-economic needs that management has failed to adequately address. As a general rule, management personnel have the right to express their views on unionization when answering questions or making statements about the union, its supporters or its campaign communications. The key: Managers must stick to facts, opinions and examples. Here are some examples of legally acceptable statements: Facts. "Currently, 89 percent of the U.S. workforce is union-free." And: "Employees who go out on an economic strike can be permanently replaced." Opinions. "I think a union is the worst thing that could ever happen to this facility." Some managers may be surprised to learn that they can even say the following to workers: "I don't think you should sign a union card." Example. "In the early `80s, the company my friend worked for went on strike. All the striking employees were permanently replaced." 1 According to NLRB regulations and rules, managers must avoid the following:Do not threaten your employees in any manner with discipline or loss of wages or benefits because of their support for the union and do not threaten to close down you business or reduce wages or benefits if employees vote to be represented by the union. Do not discipline any employee for their support for the union or 2 3 4 5 6 a b c their participation in the union campaign. Do not ask your employees, either individually or collectively, about the union campaign, or their interest in affiliating with the union. Do not change any terms or conditions of employment unless you can clearly establish that the decision to make the changes was made prior to your knowledge about the union campaign. Do not promise your employees an increase in wages or improved or new benefits if they stop the union organizing campaign or stop associating with the union. Do not prohibit employees from: Wearing union buttons, t-shirts, hats, etc., unless you have a justifiable business reason for doing so (this is an extremely rare exception and generally only applies to employees who are interacting with customers who may be adverse to the union paraphernalia). Talking about the union during time they are off the clock, including lunch and breaks. Talking about the union while they are on the clock, unless you have a company policy prohibiting all non-work-related conversations which is routinely enforced. Distributing written information about the union, unless you have a written company policy prohibiting all non-work-related distributions which is routinely enforced. Running Head: The Implications of the Great Recession of 2008 on U.S. Unionization The Implications of the Great Recession of 2008 on U.S. Unionization Student name: Institution name: Date of submission: 1 The Implications of the Great Recession of 2008 on U.S. Unionization 2 The great recession in the United States took place from December 2007 to June 2009; it started with the great downfall of the US labor markets and the resulting loss of wealth, which led to the sharp cutbacks in the general spending of the consumers (Messenger & Ghosheh, 2013). The drop in the consumption and the financial markets triggered the bubble bursting and led to collapsed business investments. The US labor market lost 8.4 million jobs and dry up of the consumer spending as well as the dramatic employment contraction. When the real estate declined, securities declined in value creating the solvency of over-leveraged banks and financial institutions in the United States (In Leab, 2014). However, the global economy felt the grip of the crisis that was facilitated by the bankruptcy of the Lehman Brothers which is the fourth largest investment bank. The United States realized unemployment as a result of the shading o the jobs, relatively 7.5 trillion jobs were shed, and American household lost an estimate of $16 trillion net worth in the stock market. Federal Reserve aggressive policies and other central bank got credits for preventing greater damage to the global economy through lowering the interest rates to promote liquidity and provision of banks with staggering $7.7 trillion loans set for an emergency. The Implications of the Great Recession of 2008 on U.S. Unionization Low unionization increase unemployment rate Lack of union power contributes to a high level of an unemployment rate in the United States, reduced gross domestic product and unscathed corporate profits. However, as an outgrowth of the weakness of the unions, labor markets in the United States provide relatively less protection against layoffs in comparison to other wealthy countries which indirectly contributes to union membership erosion (Berberoglu, 2014). Democrats under rare occasion win the extension of employment benefits in the tax deals that are distasteful to the Republicans. On The Implications of the Great Recession of 2008 on U.S. Unionization 3 the other hand, the workers in the countries that are served by the stronger labor movements get more protection from the playoffs. The role of the organizations of the unions would increase, accelerate and maintain the growth. The recruitment of the new members takes place outside the supervised election by NLRB. Evidently, the union wins a higher percentage. New UAW drive, based on the offer made to cooperate with companies with the objective of making them successful, shows a presentation of the weaknesses of the unions and represent a common strategy for the unions. The unions set up rules to organize campaigns that neutralize anti-union management tactics (In Leab, 2014). Development of public policy supporting unionism Over the years, labor has been viewed from the public policy viewpoint that labor is not a commodity and freedom to form associations and collective bargaining have been given emphasis as the key methods towards the organization of employments. As a result, the international labor organizations have reacted to support the development of the unions as a collection of individual for collective bargaining and a common interest. The US law has addressed economic inequality in conjunction with the protection of the labor movements and emphasize that economic inequality burdens do not expand economic efficiency instead draws it back and stagnates the process. Importantly, inequality in the bargaining of the employees do not possess full freedom and contract liberty and employees are organized into corporate ownership association that create a relative effect on the flow of commerce and aggravate the business depressions (Verick & Islam, 2010). Thus the stabilization and improvement of competitive wage rates and working conditions. Formation of the unions provides a freedom of expression and collective bargaining zone as a key way to setting the income of the workers. Collective bargaining and freedom of speech remains as the fundamental principles of the formation of the The Implications of the Great Recession of 2008 on U.S. Unionization 4 unions. The freedom of association, expression of workers and the effective recognition of the power if collective bargaining, determine the wage rates and integrated into the current modern labor markets while also calling for stronger collective bargaining. Unions and collective bargaining arrangements facilitate negotiated wage settlements in regards to the low paid workers and obtaining a real incomes and consumer demands (Stanford, 2014). Labor as a commodity in the Neoliberal world Economic growth can best be achieved through collective bargaining of better terms and freedom of association. Economic incentives are modified by various laws that include legal protection of association freedoms and collective bargaining that drive employers to comply with the labor standards and minimize the dealing with the unions. The enterprises enjoy market success due to the large demand for the products and the services while the economy becomes more important by increasing the disposable income to the employees as consumers (Berberoglu, 2014). Most businesses expand their mode of operation following the range alternatives, with varying labor cost and labor laws, enterprises operate as free investment regime to expand its diversification following disposable income from the customers who serve as the employees. The employers get the advantage to access the labor in other countries that provide a varied labor costs, standards and enforcements that govern the labor markets. In essence, the labor market markets have been globalized and an ability of an enterprise to structure its business to achieve what it terms as most efficient in its operation with the combination of the outsourcing to legal entities. Work that requires less level of skills can be carried out in the low labor country at employer's operation by outsourcing and offshoring of work through the chain of distributions. Challenges unions face The Implications of the Great Recession of 2008 on U.S. Unionization 5 The unions have not expanded beyond the national borders, and they tend to be tied to the nations where they were first organized and operated and where the member lives and works. These have caused the labor law and law dealing with the employer and union relationship being localized. As a result, strength of the unions have remained within the limits of the national economy due to the national economic policies and weakened the ability of the employers escaping the limits set by the labor market laws and standards. The employers have gained the momentum to access the national labor markets due to the increased competition in the global market for the goods and services provided. Because of globalization, the worked performed by any group of a unionized group can be efficiently outsourced reduces the collective bargaining motive. Whenever the workers can be replaced, it will mean the higher the freedom of association and bargaining collectively. The unions that perform particular jobs that the workers cannot be outsourced retain their power for collective bargaining (Messenger & Ghosheh, 2013). In addition to that, unions face a bleak future, the union movements continue with its operations in the environment where neoliberal theories prevail as the baseline of the social, economic and political policy. In the rare cases when workers cannot be outsourced or off shored, the unions will maintain the present extent of organization and operation as well as the current level of wage rates with benefits of collective bargaining. Future role for unions in globalized economy The role of the unions ranges from the political goals to transnational organization of unions The US union of Confederation has made a priority to the goal aimed at stopping the expansion of free trade agreements with an argument that free trade agreement would further weaken US unions drastically and domestically. It is understood as a means of protection of the US and cooperation with various labor unions on labor disputes having transnational consequences. The The Implications of the Great Recession of 2008 on U.S. Unionization 6 unions are aimed towards the de-globalization of the labor markets and the pursuit to gain the lost grounds and work on the set framework to turn back the economic globalization effects (Stanford, 2014). The principal focus of transnational organization of unions sets to address the issues related to the domestication of national unions with emphasize of the challenges that are faced by the unions in the globalized economy from the transnational perspective. The domestic issues are set to settle within global strategy (Jenkins, 2013). Unionism, labor market, and social policies Formation of the unions is viewed as the diversification of the labor markets through a reduction of the gap between the job creation and economic growth. Further, prevent the risk of long-term unemployment, persistent unemployment, and human capital deterioration. Unions reorganize how the labor markets adjust to the aggregate drop in the labor demand while the extent to which the adjustments are carried out depends on the magnitude of crisis and flexibility of labor market. Unions forms a zone for the mitigation measures as a result of the labor market policies that are enacted to maintain and increase demand, develop equilibrium match between the supply of labor and demand, provision of the incoming support and focus on vulnerable groups (In Leab, 2014). The unions have been in the forefront to create the programs that lay great emphasis on the labor markets, the initiative taken aims at creating demand and help the employees to secure work rather than being laid off. Unions evaluate the schemes to reduce further the levels of unemployment among the US workers and facilitate the job relocation as a cost measure. Unions keep workers in jobs through labor market policies such as work sharing schemes, utilization of subsidies to foster the employers to take in new staffs and strengthen reemployment policy. Re-employment policy includes search assistance, training and other The Implications of the Great Recession of 2008 on U.S. Unionization 7 relevant measures that increase employability of the unemployed thus reducing the risk of longterm unemployment and avoid the skills of the workers to become obsolete. Comprehensive or corporate campaigns, community unionism, and urban/regional coalitions The unions have embarked on the conventions that aim at organizing and collective bargaining approaches, utilization of the multiple leverage points and variety of the coalitions to exert pressure on the employers, the campaign strategy have improved the success of the unions. The community unionism is facilitated based on the workers based in the community rather than the workplace and share the ethnic ties and forms alliances with the national unions for a common good. In addition to that, coalitions in which the unions and community partners use politics and government powers of purchasing and , tax subsidy and focus on development to win the demand related to job quality band access with the aim of making demand that benefits consumers and communities (Whalen, 2011 ; Verick & Islam, 2010). In conclusion, the global imbalance remains to be a challenge that is addressed by the unions across the United States to facilitate the labor market recovery and stimulus withdrawals and debt level reduced. The aim remains to be a long-term reduction in consumption that is not offset by other forms of growth such as exports and investments. The massive stimulus provided by the low-interest rate, injection of funds into the economy and financial systems as a mitigation measure to avoid more calamities. However, the risk remains to derail improvements and hinder the effort ensuring that job creation accompanies recovery. The Implications of the Great Recession of 2008 on U.S. Unionization References Berberoglu, B. (2014). The global capitalist crisis and its aftermath: The causes and consequences of the Great Recession of 2008-2009 In Leab, D. J. (2014). Encyclopedia of American recessions and depressions. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO Jenkins, S. P. (2013). The great recession and the distribution of household income. Oxford: Oxford University Press Messenger, J. C., & Ghosheh, N. (2013). Work sharing during the Great Recession: New developments and beyond. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Stanford, A. (2014). Revaluing the federal workforce: Defending America's civil servants. Verick, S., & Islam, I. (2010). The Great Recession of 2008-2009: Causes, Consequences and Policy Responses. Bonn: IZA Whalen, C. J. (2011). Financial instability and economic security after the great recession. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar. 8 Running Head: The Implications of the Great Recession of 2008 on U.S. Unionization The Implications of the Great Recession of 2008 on U.S. Unionization Student name: Institution name: Date of submission: 1 The Implications of the Great Recession of 2008 on U.S. Unionization 2 The great recession in the United States took place from December 2007 to June 2009; it started with the great downfall of the US labor markets and the resulting loss of wealth, which led to the sharp cutbacks in the general spending of the consumers (Messenger & Ghosheh, 2013). The drop in the consumption and the financial markets triggered the bubble bursting and led to collapsed business investments. The US labor market lost 8.4 million jobs and dry up of the consumer spending as well as the dramatic employment contraction. When the real estate declined, securities declined in value creating the solvency of over-leveraged banks and financial institutions in the United States (In Leab, 2014). However, the global economy felt the grip of the crisis that was facilitated by the bankruptcy of the Lehman Brothers which is the fourth largest investment bank. The United States realized unemployment as a result of the shading o the jobs, relatively 7.5 trillion jobs were shed, and American household lost an estimate of $16 trillion net worth in the stock market. Federal Reserve aggressive policies and other central bank got credits for preventing greater damage to the global economy through lowering the interest rates to promote liquidity and provision of banks with staggering $7.7 trillion loans set for an emergency. The Implications of the Great Recession of 2008 on U.S. Unionization Low unionization increase unemployment rate Lack of union power contributes to a high level of an unemployment rate in the United States, reduced gross domestic product and unscathed corporate profits. However, as an outgrowth of the weakness of the unions, labor markets in the United States provide relatively less protection against layoffs in comparison to other wealthy countries which indirectly contributes to union membership erosion (Berberoglu, 2014). Democrats under rare occasion win the extension of employment benefits in the tax deals that are distasteful to the Republicans. On The Implications of the Great Recession of 2008 on U.S. Unionization 3 the other hand, the workers in the countries that are served by the stronger labor movements get more protection from the playoffs. The role of the organizations of the unions would increase, accelerate and maintain the growth. The recruitment of the new members takes place outside the supervised election by NLRB. Evidently, the union wins a higher percentage. New UAW drive, based on the offer made to cooperate with companies with the objective of making them successful, shows a presentation of the weaknesses of the unions and represent a common strategy for the unions. The unions set up rules to organize campaigns that neutralize anti-union management tactics (In Leab, 2014). Development of public policy supporting unionism Over the years, labor has been viewed from the public policy viewpoint that labor is not a commodity and freedom to form associations and collective bargaining have been given emphasis as the key methods towards the organization of employments. As a result, the international labor organizations have reacted to support the development of the unions as a collection of individual for collective bargaining and a common interest. The US law has addressed economic inequality in conjunction with the protection of the labor movements and emphasize that economic inequality burdens do not expand economic efficiency instead draws it back and stagnates the process. Importantly, inequality in the bargaining of the employees do not possess full freedom and contract liberty and employees are organized into corporate ownership association that create a relative effect on the flow of commerce and aggravate the business depressions (Verick & Islam, 2010). Thus the stabilization and improvement of competitive wage rates and working conditions. Formation of the unions provides a freedom of expression and collective bargaining zone as a key way to setting the income of the workers. Collective bargaining and freedom of speech remains as the fundamental principles of the formation of the The Implications of the Great Recession of 2008 on U.S. Unionization 4 unions. The freedom of association, expression of workers and the effective recognition of the power if collective bargaining, determine the wage rates and integrated into the current modern labor markets while also calling for stronger collective bargaining. Unions and collective bargaining arrangements facilitate negotiated wage settlements in regards to the low paid workers and obtaining a real incomes and consumer demands (Stanford, 2014). Labor as a commodity in the Neoliberal world Economic growth can best be achieved through collective bargaining of better terms and freedom of association. Economic incentives are modified by various laws that include legal protection of association freedoms and collective bargaining that drive employers to comply with the labor standards and minimize the dealing with the unions. The enterprises enjoy market success due to the large demand for the products and the services while the economy becomes more important by increasing the disposable income to the employees as consumers (Berberoglu, 2014). Most businesses expand their mode of operation following the range alternatives, with varying labor cost and labor laws, enterprises operate as free investment regime to expand its diversification following disposable income from the customers who serve as the employees. The employers get the advantage to access the labor in other countries that provide a varied labor costs, standards and enforcements that govern the labor markets. In essence, the labor market markets have been globalized and an ability of an enterprise to structure its business to achieve what it terms as most efficient in its operation with the combination of the outsourcing to legal entities. Work that requires less level of skills can be carried out in the low labor country at employer's operation by outsourcing and offshoring of work through the chain of distributions. Challenges unions face The Implications of the Great Recession of 2008 on U.S. Unionization 5 The unions have not expanded beyond the national borders, and they tend to be tied to the nations where they were first organized and operated and where the member lives and works. These have caused the labor law and law dealing with the employer and union relationship being localized. As a result, strength of the unions have remained within the limits of the national economy due to the national economic policies and weakened the ability of the employers escaping the limits set by the labor market laws and standards. The employers have gained the momentum to access the national labor markets due to the increased competition in the global market for the goods and services provided. Because of globalization, the worked performed by any group of a unionized group can be efficiently outsourced reduces the collective bargaining motive. Whenever the workers can be replaced, it will mean the higher the freedom of association and bargaining collectively. The unions that perform particular jobs that the workers cannot be outsourced retain their power for collective bargaining (Messenger & Ghosheh, 2013). In addition to that, unions face a bleak future, the union movements continue with its operations in the environment where neoliberal theories prevail as the baseline of the social, economic and political policy. In the rare cases when workers cannot be outsourced or off shored, the unions will maintain the present extent of organization and operation as well as the current level of wage rates with benefits of collective bargaining. Future role for unions in globalized economy The role of the unions ranges from the political goals to transnational organization of unions The US union of Confederation has made a priority to the goal aimed at stopping the expansion of free trade agreements with an argument that free trade agreement would further weaken US unions drastically and domestically. It is understood as a means of protection of the US and cooperation with various labor unions on labor disputes having transnational consequences. The The Implications of the Great Recession of 2008 on U.S. Unionization 6 unions are aimed towards the de-globalization of the labor markets and the pursuit to gain the lost grounds and work on the set framework to turn back the economic globalization effects (Stanford, 2014). The principal focus of transnational organization of unions sets to address the issues related to the domestication of national unions with emphasize of the challenges that are faced by the unions in the globalized economy from the transnational perspective. The domestic issues are set to settle within global strategy (Jenkins, 2013). Unionism, labor market, and social policies Formation of the unions is viewed as the diversification of the labor markets through a reduction of the gap between the job creation and economic growth. Further, prevent the risk of long-term unemployment, persistent unemployment, and human capital deterioration. Unions reorganize how the labor markets adjust to the aggregate drop in the labor demand while the extent to which the adjustments are carried out depends on the magnitude of crisis and flexibility of labor market. Unions forms a zone for the mitigation measures as a result of the labor market policies that are enacted to maintain and increase demand, develop equilibrium match between the supply of labor and demand, provision of the incoming support and focus on vulnerable groups (In Leab, 2014). The unions have been in the forefront to create the programs that lay great emphasis on the labor markets, the initiative taken aims at creating demand and help the employees to secure work rather than being laid off. Unions evaluate the schemes to reduce further the levels of unemployment among the US workers and facilitate the job relocation as a cost measure. Unions keep workers in jobs through labor market policies such as work sharing schemes, utilization of subsidies to foster the employers to take in new staffs and strengthen reemployment policy. Re-employment policy includes search assistance, training and other The Implications of the Great Recession of 2008 on U.S. Unionization 7 relevant measures that increase employability of the unemployed thus reducing the risk of longterm unemployment and avoid the skills of the workers to become obsolete. Comprehensive or corporate campaigns, community unionism, and urban/regional coalitions The unions have embarked on the conventions that aim at organizing and collective bargaining approaches, utilization of the multiple leverage points and variety of the coalitions to exert pressure on the employers, the campaign strategy have improved the success of the unions. The community unionism is facilitated based on the workers based in the community rather than the workplace and share the ethnic ties and forms alliances with the national unions for a common good. In addition to that, coalitions in which the unions and community partners use politics and government powers of purchasing and , tax subsidy and focus on development to win the demand related to job quality band access with the aim of making demand that benefits consumers and communities (Whalen, 2011 ; Verick & Islam, 2010). In conclusion, the global imbalance remains to be a challenge that is addressed by the unions across the United States to facilitate the labor market recovery and stimulus withdrawals and debt level reduced. The aim remains to be a long-term reduction in consumption that is not offset by other forms of growth such as exports and investments. The massive stimulus provided by the low-interest rate, injection of funds into the economy and financial systems as a mitigation measure to avoid more calamities. However, the risk remains to derail improvements and hinder the effort ensuring that job creation accompanies recovery. The Implications of the Great Recession of 2008 on U.S. Unionization References Berberoglu, B. (2014). The global capitalist crisis and its aftermath: The causes and consequences of the Great Recession of 2008-2009 In Leab, D. J. (2014). Encyclopedia of American recessions and depressions. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO Jenkins, S. P. (2013). The great recession and the distribution of household income. Oxford: Oxford University Press Messenger, J. C., & Ghosheh, N. (2013). Work sharing during the Great Recession: New developments and beyond. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar Stanford, A. (2014). Revaluing the federal workforce: Defending America's civil servants. Verick, S., & Islam, I. (2010). The Great Recession of 2008-2009: Causes, Consequences and Policy Responses. Bonn: IZA Whalen, C. J. (2011). Financial instability and economic security after the great recession. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar. 8