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What are workplace unions?

 Hello everyone! 

Today we're going to be talking about labor unions. 

Alright, so I'm sure you've heard the term labor unions a lot recently. I know I have. But what are they exactly? The concept is simple. 

Labor unions are organizations that allow employees or members of a certain business to collectively organize. This platform is meant to serve as an intermediary between the employees and the employers and the goal for this setting is to allow workers to demand more favorable working conditions. Whether it be better pay or more sick leave, workers will be able to bargain and achieve concessions from their employers through the power of numbers. 

Awesome. So in short, workers can unionize and demand more rights from their employees. This evidently sounds like a good thing. If so, why is there so much fuss about it?

Well, employers don't want you to unionize for obvious reasons. Most employers are content with the status quo; it benefits them. Now, while I'm all for workers rights, I don't like to bash employers and businesses for the sake of bashing them. A lot of business owners--I'm admitting this a tad reluctantly--are good people who like to treat workers fairly. What I'm not okay with is the exploration of workers for profit. That doesn't sit right with me. 

So employers tell you not to unionize. But at the end of the day, what if you really want to? can you unionize. The answer is...YES. 

Under the National Labor Relations Act, it is your inherent right to organize and form a union. It is ILLEGAL for an employer to fire you or treat you differently because you were unionizing. They can't threaten to fire you, pay you less, or favor another employee because of your association with a union. You can wear merchandise that supports your unions, sign petitions and circulate union cards. The employer can't do anything about it. 

So unions are wonderful. They protect us, the workers, from wrongful harassment and discrimination. The more you know about your rights in the workforce, the stronger you become for it. 

And that's it for today! Work on everyone!

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