The union system in the United States is very intricate and complex. Unions exist in just about every industry. They serve to represent employees in several ways. Some are more aggressive than others. They all gain strength from the number of workers in the union. The greater the number of workers is, the stronger the union is. Unions, sometimes called Labor Unions, represent more than 10 percent of the labor force in the country today.
Unions collect monthly dues from each of their workers usually through payroll deductions. It is a good idea to learn whether or not a company you may want to work with has a union. Once you are a member of a union, you belong to an organization that will deal with the company's management in several different ways. The single most important thing unions do for their workers is to negotiate pay rates and benefits packages. The idea is that there is strength in numbers. Having a union representative negotiate a pay raise with a company is better than having to negotiate on your own. Once pay rates are established, every worker doing the same job gets the same pay.
Unions also negotiate benefits packages, which include retirement. A strong union can protect workers from being taken advantage of by a company. Most union jobs are in the manufacturing industry and the jobs there are highly desirable. It is not easy to get into one of these jobs, but if you are fortunate enough to land a union job, you may like it.
Even in the face of all this, unions are on the decline in the United States. A lower number of workers in the U.S. belong to unions today. There are many reasons for this, but mainly it is because the labor laws in the country protect workers much like unions did years ago.
