Labor Unions
What do you think of when you hear the phrase "labor unions?" Most people associate a negative connotation with labor unions. They think that labor unions are the only cause of strikes and work stoppages. Most think that people in unions are greedy and will do anything to get more money. Others swear by their unions, saying that their employers would take advantage of them if they didn't organize their unions. However as we prepare to enter the new millennium, labor unions are decreasing in size. Let's look at some of reasons. First, the numbers are unmistakable. At the end of 1997, when the most recent count was made, only 14.1% of workers belonged to unions, the lowest percentage since 1936 (Gross 23). This is a dramatic decrease from when unions were at their height at the end of World War II when 35.3% of Americans were in unions (Galenson 13). One cause of this fall of union membership is the decline of manufacturing in America and the transfer of much manufacturing work over seas (Gross 24). Because of advances in technology and labor saving innovations, fewer people are required to make steel and assembler automobiles. As a result, only 16.1% of U.S. workers now work in factori
Nike does not make a single shoe in the United States and many insurance companies are having paperwork processed over seas (Hacker 45). 1% had worked ten or more years at their current job, compared with 51. Professors at New York City University can now get as much as $101,655 for twenty-eight weeks of teaching. Many of these companies have their work done abroad. 9% of union members are from the public sector. Here are a few examples of salaries secured through collective bargaining by highly trained professionals: Pilots with only fifteen years of service at Northwest, American, United, and US Airways now earn on average over $175,000 a year. So, one might ask, what caused this to happen? At some point in the 1980s, the balance of power shifted against labor unions. In the case with the automobile industry, many factories are involved in the production of their cars. If even one of these factories strikes then the other factories must also shut down.
Common topics in this essay:
Basketball Association,
War II,
Margaret Thatcher,
Labor Unions,
Ronald Reagan,
Statesmen Jan,
Books Feb,
labor unions,
Aronwitz Stanley,
City University,
Broken Promise,
return former glory,
former glory,
1999 vol,
ago aronwitz,
twenty ago,
thousands workers,
unions people,
return former,
labor unions people,
public sector,
twenty ago aronwitz,
american labor,
|
Acceptance Essays
