Why do workers join unions?

Human beings are rational creature. They usually act upon rationally in different spheres of their lives. Similarly, workers join a union with a rationale approach whether joining a union will be benefi­cial or not. This can simply be decided by making a cost-benefit analysis in this regard. The excess of benefits over costs, i.e., profit or reward, justifies workers’ joining to a trade union.

Researchers have devoted a great deal of time and effort to study “why do employees choose to join a union.” They have failed to report a common list of reasons that apply to all organising efforts.

Nonetheless, there is a general agreement among the labour experts that certain issues are likely to lead to an organising drive by workers Major ones among them are the following:

Job Security:

Employees need to have a sense of job security and want to be sure that management will not make unfair and arbitrary decisions about their employment. They look unions to ensure that their jobs are duly protected against lay offs, recall, promotion, etc.

Wages and Benefits:

Employees work for livelihood, i.e., bread-and-butter. Obviously, bread-and-butter issues of em­ployees are always important issues in their unionization. The employees may think that the union, with its united strength, will ensure fair wages at par with those of other workers in the community, benefits such as medical facility, pensions, paid sick leave, vacations and holidays for them.

Working Conditions:

Employees like to work in a healthy and safe environment. Although there are statutory provisions for providing employees a safe work environment employees still feel more secured knowing that trade union is directly involved in safety and health issues relating to them.

Fair and Just Supervision:

The days are long gone when managers / leaders could rule employees with an iron fist. Thanks to the trade unions that brought about a change or shift in leadership styles from autocractic to democratic, or say, people oriented to ensure that the managers treat their employees fairly, justly, and respectfully. Employees can only be disciplined for “just cause.” In case of mistreatment from the employer, the employee may file a written grievance against the employer.

The complaint will be heard and resolved through a formal grievance procedure involving collective discussion by both union and management representatives.

Powerlessness:

Employees individually often feel voiceless or powerless to bring about changes that will benefit them’. But, it is union that provides them a powerful, collective voice to communicate to management their dissatisfaction and frustration. This is based on labour philosophy ‘unity is the strength”.

Need to Belong:

Man is a social animal. Hence, need to belong is strong in both his personal and work lives. The union, from this point of view, provides a mechanism for bringing people together not only to promote common job-related interests but also to organise programmes, functions, and social events from time to time, to create a strong bond among the union members’.

To conclude, the management’s failure in ensuring job security, fair remuneration, safe and healthy working conditions, fair supervision, involvement in decision making, sense of belonging etc., to employees motivates them to join a union.

Thank you for your kind invitation and I agree with Mr Shameer Nazir  answer

Agree with experts answers.

People who aren't in a union or don't know anyone in a trade or labor union often unsure what labor unions do and why someone would join. A labor union is an organization of workers formed to further the social and economic interests of its members.

The nature of work in the world is changing. Employers are trying to shed responsibility for providing health insurance, good pension coverage, reasonable work hours and job safety protections. Perhaps a logical starting point is to ask this basic question: why do workers join unions? The fact is that there are almost as many reasons for joining a union as there are union members. I would like to focus the six reasons for joining a union.

1. Economic reasons

For higher wages, increased benefits, shorter hours and improved working conditions are certainly important reasons for joining a union.

2. Job security

One basic human need is security. In the work environment, employees find themselves in a dependent relationship on their bosses and on what they probably view as impersonal organizations. They want to know that their jobs will exist in the future and that they will be protected against unfair or arbitrary treatment. Anyway, with the growth of technological change, however, workers feel especially vulnerable to job loss. For example, several thousand robots are now being utilized in manufacturing, with continued growth expected for the use of robotics in the near future.

3. Social reasons

Men and women are social beings. Therefore, workers have a strong need to be accepted by their peers, to belong, and to go along with others. Some unions offer attractive benefits, such as insurance. Peer pressure may also cause workers to join unions.

4. Recognition

Some employees have found that the union structure offers them an opportunity to gain recognition not available to them in the business organization. For example, a worker with little education may serve on a shop committee or even be elected as a position of influence, such as steward or officer in the local.

5. Participation

Many workers have explained their union membership in terms of their desire to obtain a voice in decisions that affect them in their working environment. To other workers who feel lost in our large, complex, industrial society, the union is viewed as a last hope that they will be able to influence their destiny.

6. Compulsion

Aside from social pressure to join a union, some workers become union members simply because the employment contract requires them to do so. It would appear that unions serve a broad network of employee needs.

One of the big reasons workers join a union is to ensure fair treatment in the workplace. As a union member, you have a strong collective voice for negotiating with employers about pay & wages, work hours, benefits - including retirement plans, health insurance, vacation and sick leave, tuition reimbursement, etc., Union members earn more money, have better benefits, and help employers create a more stable, productive workforce in which workers have a say in improving their jobs. As you plan your future, consider where your best career opportunities are and how union membership can help. What do you think are the most important reasons why employees want unions? What can management do to respond to these concerns in advance of union organizing activity? The role of HR department in developing and maintaining harmonious working relations between employers and employees is very important. In many countries large proportions of the working population nowadays belong to labor unions. The HR strategy is to ensure that the organization “has (a) the right types of people, (b) in the right places at the right times, (c) doing the right things right.”

We can see, therefore, that the reasons why employees join a union cannot be reduced to any single, uncomplicated statement. To the extent that people cannot find opportunities to satisfy those needs in the workplace, they tend to form unions. Some writers say that the existence of a union is an indictment of management’s failure to provide opportunities for need satisfaction at all levels of the organization. 

There are several wonderful answers herein already from great professionals, nothing to add

Workers join union for demanding better working conditions and getting better pay from their employers. Worker joined unions may be the workers had not rights and getting overworked and under paid.  Originally people joined unions to protect them from management. But now the unions are doing exactly the same thing to the workers that they were designed to protect them from.

Thanks for the invite ............................ Leave an answer to the experts

Human tendency is to look for safety in numbers.

I leave the answer to experts and specialists in this area