HRM 7000 WEEK 8 ASSIGNMENT – Labor Unions in the 21st Century
Week 8
Labor Unions in the 21st Century
The evolution of unions changed the nature and relationship of work in America. Unions are frequently seen as the foundation for the rise of the American middle class. As America industrialized in the early 19th century, working conditions, pay, and hours of work were determined exclusively by employers. Workers migrating to the cities to find work in the new industrial factories, in mines, and in other occupations that were frequently hazardous found themselves with little or no voice.
The banding together of workers in unions began to level the playing field. Unions, as representatives of the collective workers, were able to negotiate on their behalf for better conditions, shorter hours, and more pay. Bivens et al. (2017) point out that unions provide an avenue for employees to express these ideas without fear of vengeance.
The future of unions encompasses many different factors. The structure and actions of unions and their effect on the global marketplace will be important in examining future trends. Government regulations and federal legislation will also play an important role in shaping unions in the future. Are these trends predictable based on what is occurring now in labor and management relations, or are recent trends an anomaly, and will unionization rise in the future? Trumka (2018) contends there has been a decades-long decrease in the number of workers unionized, with 34% U.S. workers unionized in 1954 but only 10.7% today.
References
Bivens, J., Engdahl, L., Gould, E., Kroeger, T., McNicholas, C., Mishel, L., Mokhiber, Z., Shierholz, H., vonWilper, M., Wilson, V., & Zipperer, B. (2017 August 24). How today’s unions help working people: Giving workers the power to improve their jobs and unrig the economy. Economic Policy Institute. https://www.epi.org/publication/how-todays-unions-help-working-people-giving-workers-the-power-to-improve-their-jobs-and-unrig-the-economy/#epi-toc-21
Trumka, R.L. (2018, August 28). Can organized labor come back? Yale Insights. https://insights.som.yale.edu/insights/can-organized-labor- come-back
Weekly Resources and Assignments
Review the resources from the Course Resources link, located in the top navigation bar, to prepare for this week’s assignments. The resources may include textbook reading assignments, journal articles, websites, links to tools or software, videos, handouts, rubrics, etc.
Week 8 Resources
• How Do Industrial Relations Climate and Union Instrumentality Enhance Employee Performance? The Mediating Effects of Perceived Job Security and Trust in Management
Newman, A., Cooper, B., Holland, P., Miao, Q., & Teicher, J. (2019). How do industrial relations climate and union instrumentality enhance employee performance? The mediating effects of perceived job security and trust in management. Human Resource Management, 58(1), 35–44.
This article examines how the existence of labor unions can improve employee performance.
• Do Millennials and Generation X Employees Differ in Their Perceptions of Labor Unions in the United States? An Exploratory Study
Cates, S., & Jackson, J. (2020). Do Millennials and Generation X employees differ in their perceptions of labor unions in the United States? An exploratory study. International Journal of Business & Public Administration, 17(1), 71–83.
This article provides a generational view on the future of labor unions.
• Determinants of Union Organizing Success in Healthcare
Lowery, C. M., Beadles II, N. A., & Miller, A. L. (2020). Determinants of union organizing success in health care. Journal of Managerial Issues, 32(4), 440–454.
This article examines the success of organizing labor unions in the healthcare sector.
Optional Resources
• Agency Cost, Corporate Governance, and the American Labor Union
Macey, J. R. (2021). Agency costs, corporate governance, and the American labor union. Yale Journal on Regulation, 38(1), 311–362.
This article discusses ways to help increase union membership.
• Consent, Contestability, and Unions
Lindblom, L. (2019). Consent, contestability, and unions. Business Ethics Quarterly, 29(2), 189–211.
This article explains the importance of unions from a normative perspective.
Week 8 – Assignment: Interpret Labor Unions
Instructions
For this assignment, you will investigate labor unions and informally share your findings as if you worked for a local newspaper. Select three healthcare worker unions, one of which must be international. Then, prepare a podcast addressing the following:
• A brief history of labor unions, including how and why they were formed.
• For each of your three unions, provide the following:
o The country or state in which it was established.
o The number of members (if available).
o A description of the union. For example, does it represent a specific specialty in healthcare (i.e., nursing), or is it all-inclusive? What are the terms of membership? What do the members say about the benefits? Are there union fees?
Length: 4 to 5-minute podcast with transcript and a reference page
References: Include a minimum of 3 scholarly references. The tone of the assignment should be informal, so you are not required to directly cite your references in your submission.
The completed assignment should address all of the assignment requirements, exhibit evidence of concept knowledge, and demonstrate thoughtful consideration of the content presented in the course. The writing should integrate scholarly resources, reflect academic expectations and current APA standards
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