Full Careers
What kinds of occupational complaints do service workers have?Would unionization may be able to help resolve s
Is there any reason why a "new collar" worker would not want the same benefits and clout that "blue collar" workers were able to get by unionizing? What might be some of the reasons why a "new collar" worker would be hesitant to join a union? What do you feel are the future prospects of unions in the service industry? Why? Unions now represent only 13.2 percent of the labor force (called "blue collar" workers). If the figure goes much lower, unions may become irrelevant as a force in business. The answer, many union organizers believe, is to now organize service workers (clerical workers, insurance agents, nurses, teachers, mental health aides, computer technicians, loan officers, auditors, and salespeople). It is expected that most of the future job growth in the United States will be in service businesses. The question is whether or not unions will be able to win over service workers (also called "new collar" workers). There are some 20 million such workers, more than the AFL-CIO’s current 13 million members. To reach these workers, labor unions have to broaden their traditional bread and butter (money) appeals to include quality-of-work concerns such as career development, professional autonomy, and dealing with technological change. Thus unions may push issues such as pay equity, career ladders, child care, job training, and stress management. Workers will also have to be won over by successful union marketing. Most service workers are not very familiar with unions, and there is some resistance to union organizing. Nonetheless, unions have made some progress. A recent survey found a growing discontent among non-union workers over pay and job-advancement opportunities. More than 75 percent feel that unions generally improve pay and working conditions. The survey indicated that 53 percent of non-union service workers would react favorably to having union representation. Some unions that have had success recruiting service workers include the Service Employees Union, the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees Union, and the National Union of Hospital and Health Care Employees. One union that is doing a particularly good job of listening to employee needs and adjusting to them is AFSCME, the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees. The union’s campaign emphasized issues such as workplace dignity and safety, pay equity, and career development. One worker who joined has a complaint that many new computer workers have. She keys information from tax forms into computers, and her work is monitored to see if she meets daily goals. If not, she receives warnings. This management style is greatly resented by some workers.
Public Comments
- I certainly feel unionization would help to solve problems for many workers in what have been in the past areas that weren't unionized. The primary concern in all unions should be improved working conditions and that changes with each setting. I work in a plant and so our union tries, an pretty successfully, addresses issues such as overtime, healthcare, management employee relationships and working conditions on the floor. Since, in a production plant, speed and quality or the primary concerns we have programs in place to help older workers or handicapped workers since often they have difficulty keeping up with the pace. What ever issues are in the negotiated contract are arrived at by a bargaining process with union and the company. This means that you can negotiate what ever is important in your situation. Public sector employees operate under a slightly different set of rules.
