Week 10 Blog Assignment

Prior to this assignment I knew very little about labor unions and how they function. With deeper research I soon learned that unions provide both advantages and disadvantages for employees and employers. One of the biggest benefits for employees is that unions help workers collectively negotiate better wages, benefits, and working conditions. The lecture notes also explain that employees often join unions because they believe it is the best way to make changes in order to receive fair treatment and protect themselves from management decisions. Further research highlighted that unionized workers generally earn higher wages and have greater job security than nonunion workers. With that being said unions can also create challenges. Employers often dislike unions because they increase labor costs and can limit management flexibility regarding the schedules, promotions, and workplace policies. Along with that, union dues will be expensive, and some employees may disagree with union leadership or priorities making it hard to function under certain conditions. 

In the end, a takeaway from my research is that labor unions play an important role in making sure that employees have a voice in workplace decisions. At the same time, strong leadership and positive employee relations will lower the need for unionization by addressing employee concerns before they become larger issues. This idea that employee engagement and development efforts can make union representation less necessary is something I hadn't thought about much prior to this course.