May is Labor History Month. Labor unions in the United States are legally recognized as representatives of workers in many industries.
The most prominent unions are among public sector employees, such as teachers and police. Activity by labor unions in the United States today centers on collective bargaining over wages, benefits, and working conditions for their membership and on representing their members if management attempts to violate contract provisions.
Although much smaller compared to their peak membership in the 1950s, unions also remain an important political factor (especially within the Democratic Party), both through mobilization of their own memberships and through coalitions with like-minded activist organizations.
American union membership in the private sector has, in recent years, fallen to under 9% -- levels not seen since 1932. American unions remain an important political factor around issues such as immigrant rights, trade policy, health care, and living wage campaigns. Unions allege that employer-incited opposition has contributed to this decline in membership.
Unions are currently trying to reduce employers' influence over workers' decisions to be represented by a union by advocating new federal legislation that would allow workers to elect union representation by signing cards, a process often referred to as card check recognition.
This proposed legislation is known as the Employee Free Choice Act. Under this proposed Act, once a majority of employees in a workplace have signed a card, the employer will be obligated to make a good-faith effort to bargain a contract with the union.
Learning Activity
The history of labor unions reaches back into the early 1800s with the first national union being formed in 1866: The National Labor Union. The study of labor union history focuses on the struggle for workers' rights for a living wage, safety, and quality of life issues.
Assign students to write a report of at least 150 words (or a PowerPoint of seven slides) that cites at least three resources. Students should select an era that produced major reforms for organized labor from the two listed in the pathfinders below. Students should address the following essential questions for critical thinking (you can add or substitute others):
What were some of the abuses of workers that were common in this era?
Who were some of the leaders of organized labor during this era?
What reforms were enacted that protected workers' rights during this era?
Why did organized labor membership recede to the level it is today?
Do we still need labor unions, and why or why not?
Research Pathfinders
1: Topics Tab > Industrial Age (c. 1880 - 1910) > Labor Movement
2: Topics Tab > The Great Depression (c. 1928 - 1939) > Great Depression and Labor
