Organizing
What is Organizing?
The common term for a group of workers looking to join a
union is “Organizing.” Workers organize for various reasons,
be it to improve their working conditions, increase their
pay or benefits, and/or to create a better working
environment. We encourage you to read more about us to see
if joining our union is right for you and/or your coworkers.
Introduction
The American Promise is that if we go to school, work hard,
and become a productive and faithful employee, we can then
expect to support a family, raise and educate our children,
enjoy a healthy and fulfilling life and retire with dignity.
We weren’t supposed to have to win the lottery, or be a
corporate executive to enjoy the American dream.
That was the vision of middle class Americans, who once
modeled the image of what it was to be an American. The
middle class is disappearing in direct proportion to the
demise of the American union movement. After World War II,
nearly 30 percent of our work force belonged to unions.
Today, barely half that are organized. Today, a few own the
world’s resources while most live in poverty.
Wages of $10-$12 per hour are common. For most of these
workers there is no health insurance or retirement plans.
The result? Taxpayers across the United States are making up
for what employers should be paying with public assistance
programs. That’s corporate welfare.
Why are wages so low? Because that’s the easiest way to
increase profitability. The result? Today, the wealthiest
one percent own as much of our nation as ninety percent of
the rest of us. Corporate CEO’s can earn 500 times the wages
paid their workers.
Why Unions?
The freedom to form unions is a basic human right. In 1935,
the US Government enacted the National Labor Relations Act
that said, “Employees shall have the right to form…labor
organizations…to bargain collectively…(and employers may
not) interfere with…the exercise of…this right.” In 1948,
the US joined four-fifths of United Nations member states to
ratify the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which
included the right of all people to come together in unions.
Workers form unions because there is power in numbers. Where
unions are strong, employers must bargain collectively to
set the terms and conditions of employment. The demand for
profits must then be compromised with fairness toward
workers.
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How Employers Prevent Unions?
When American workers seek to exercise the right to form a
union, they nearly always run into a buzz saw of employer
threats, intimidation and coercion such as:
• Captive audience meetings
• One-on-one meetings with supervisors
• Threats to close or move the workplace if workers vote to
unionize
• Hiring professional consultants (union-busters) to
coordinate anti-worker campaigns
• Firing workers for union activity
According to Human Rights Watch, the treatment of workers by
employers and the failure of the US government to prevent it
constitute a serious violation of human rights. Their report
says, “Many workers…are spied on, harassed, pressured,
threatened, suspended, fired, deported or otherwise
victimized in reprisal for their exercise of the right to
choose a union.”
The consequences have been devastation for all of American
society. When collective bargaining is suppressed, wages
lag, inequality and poverty grow, race and gender pay gaps
widen, society’s safety net is strained and civic and
political participation are undermined.
What Have Unions Done for Us?
8-hour day
5-day work week
Health Insurance
Good pensions
Higher wages
Job security
Overtime pay
Job safety
Family and medical leave
Fair treatment for women, people of all ethnic backgrounds,
and those with disabilities
Union members earn 28 percent more than nonunion workers.
But stronger unions raise living standards and improve the
quality of life for everyone. In the 10 states in which
unions are the strongest, there is less poverty, higher
household income, more education spending, and better public
policy than in the 10 states where unions are weakest.
Unions Encourage Democracy:
Unions encourage voting and other forms of political
participation by members and other social groups with common
interests. Political Scientist Benjamin Radcliff has
estimated that for every 1 percent decline in union
membership there is a 0.4 percent decline in voter
participation.
35 Things Your Employer Cannot Do:
1. Attend any union meeting, park across the street from the
hall or engage in any undercover activity which would
indicate that the employees are being kept under
surveillance to determine who is and who is not
participating in the union program.
2. Tell employees that the company will fire or punish
them if they engage in union activity
3. Lay off, discharge, discipline any employee for union
activity.
4. Grant employees wage increases, special concessions or
benefits in order to keep the union out.
5. Bar employee-union representatives from soliciting
employees’ memberships on or off the company property during
non-working hours.
6. Ask employees about union matters, meetings, etc.
(Some employees may, of their own accord, walk up and tell
of such matters. It is not an unfair labor practice to
listen, but to ask questions to obtain additional
information is illegal).
7. Ask employees what they think about the union or a
union representative once the employee refuses to discuss
it.
8. Ask employees how they intend to vote
9. Threaten employees with reprisal for participating in
union activities. For example, threaten to move the plant or
close the business, curtail operations or reduce employees’
benefits.
10. Promise benefits to employees if they reject the
union.
11. Give financial support or other assistance to a
union.
12. Announce that the company will not deal with the
union.
13. Threaten to close, in fact close, or move plant in
order to avoid dealing with a union.
14. Ask employees whether or not they belong to a union,
or have signed up for union representation.
15. Ask an employee, during the hiring interview, about
his affiliation with a labor organization or how he feels
about unions.
16. Make anti-union statements or act in a way that might
show preference for a non-union man.
17. Make distinctions between union and non-union
employees when signing overtime work or desirable work.
18. Purposely team up non-union men and keep them apart
from those supporting the union.
19. Transfer workers on the basis of union affiliations
or activities.
20. Choose employees to be laid off in order to weaken
the union’s strength or discourage membership in the union.
21. Discriminate against union people when disciplining
employees.
22. By nature of work assignments, create conditions
intended to get rid of an employee because of his union
activity.
23. Fail to grant a scheduled benefit or wage increase
because of union activity.
24. Deviate from company policy for the purpose of
getting rid of a union supporter.
25. Take action that adversely affects an employee’s job
or pay rate because of union activity.
26. Threaten workers or coerce them in an attempt to
influence their vote.
27. Threaten a union member through a third party.
28. Promise employees a reward or future benefit if they
decide “no union”.
29. Tell employees overtime work (and premium pay) will
be discontinued if the plant is unionized.
30. Say unionization will force the company to lay off
employees.
31. Say unionization will do away with vacations or other
benefits and privileges presently in effect.
32. Promise employees promotions, raises or other
benefits if they get out of the union or refrain from
joining the union.
33. Start a petition or circular against the union or
encourage or take part in its circulation if started by
employees.
34. Urge employees to try to induce others to oppose the
union or keep out of it.
35. Visit the homes of employees to urge them to reject
the union.
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