What is the difference between a pro-union person and an anti-union person?

Answer 1

I disagree with the first post. I fully understand the complexity of running a business. Not only do I have a degree in Business, I have personal experience with both small business and working for a large corporation. By the way, Profits are what you have AFTER you pay the bills.

Revenue - Expenses = Profit (or Loss)

I am also very pro-Craft Union. Union jobs put food on the table while I was growing up, and now Union jobs are doing the same for my husband (3rd generation Union) and I.

The biggest difference I have seen is the anti-union people either don't acknowledge the benefits we have today due to the union movement, or take the stance of now that we have the laws the unions are irrelevant. If this were a Utopian world, that would be true. But, as we all know, it's not. Businesses who are more concerned with their bottom line than they are about their employees can, will, and have cut corners that jeopardize the safety and welfare of it's employees. One voice is easy to ignore; the chorus of a union is much more difficult to tune out. When a union calls OSHA they get a much faster response than an individual.

I've also seen glaring ignorance (on both sides) of the different types of unions. Industry unions and craft unions are VERY different. Industry unions (like Teachers, Autoworkers, Airline Pilots, etc) are not traditional full referral unions like most craft unions (like Boilermakers, Ironworkers, Pipefitters, etc). Unfortunately, all Unions get lumped together in people's minds.

Anti-Union people seem to want ALL unions to just go away. Seems like they don't see the hundreds of thousands of blue-collar workers who would no longer have retirement, health care, training, enforcement of OSHA standards, decent pay, death benefits for their families, or work!

Contractors can actually save quite a bit of money by having Union dispatched workers. The company would not have to hold & administer the pension and health care plans; the Union does that (the company just pays into the funds for the worker's term of employment). The unions train their men/women through the Apprenticeship and Skills Testing. The unions provide OSHA training courses & certifications, MOST testing, Certification courses and testing. All those things contribute to the value of a union worker and reduce labor associated costs for a company. A union contractor doesn't have to go through a lengthy hiring process, they just call the hall and request more workers.

Another way to look at it: That power plant a few miles away needs it's boiler repaired. The welds are critical; on such a large boiler the explosion would equal if not exceed an atomic bomb if a weld failed. You can either have a non-union worker who the company hired because it needed more workers, OR a Journeyman Boilermaker making those welds. Keep in mind, if the company was in a hurry to have more workers they may not have done in depth research into the claims on the guy's resume. Where as, the Journeyman was required to have a certain verifiable number of hours on the job and has been tested for his welding ability. Which one do you want?

Answer 2

As someone who is a union steward now and has been in 2 unions, plus, I have been the manager of 2 small companies (50 employees roughly) and I have started 2 businesses, so I have also been self employed, I think I am in a good position to answer that question. The biggest difference is the perception of what is a successful business and what a union does. Union members believe that if the company is doing well and making profits, then the employees should share in that success. They also believe as I think most employers did until the 90's that companies have a responsibility to "provide for/take care" of their employees. Many times companies considered their employees as an extended family. The company I work for had a short strike a few years ago and a "temporary strike replacement worker" was asked to leave the business, by management because they were spending their time at a window taunting the striking members that were walking a picket line, instead of working. When the temp employee was fired, they assaulted the manager and it was union members that even though they were on strike, they defended the manager and held the fired temp until the police arrived. Again, pro-union people believe a business is an extended family. You stick together and everyone wins.

An anti-union person feels that unions are out to take as much as they can from their employers, regardless of the damage that may do to the company financially. An anti-union person feels that an employee is no more than cattle or a tool to be used when needed and discarded when not needed. Anti-union people feel that only the ownership of the company is entitled to the profits of the company. Anti-union people also feel that a union is there to challenge the employers inherent right to manage the company and they see unions as interfering with the managing of the company.

No union member(pro-union) would want to see their employer or any other employer struggle financially because if the business collapses, they are out of a job and union members are probably the only group that doesn't like to see a competitor go out of business, because union members realize that they could have been the ones who lost their jobs. Pro-union people believe that the employees(members) also have a responsibility to their employers to make the company money as when they do, they secure their own jobs. Pro-union people look at what will the future hold for their job and will their children be able to follow in their footsteps.

Anti-union people think that unions are a threat to business and that is false. Think about it, what union would want to take so much from their employer that the employer goes out of business? If their is no employer, there are no jobs and no union.

Pro-union people want to see their company grow. Most of the time they are stockholders in the company. A profitable company means a good job, good benefits and a good retirement.

Anti-union people think that a union is there to keep companies from making "too much" money, when that is not true. When my employer makes a profit and they do every year, they reward the stockholders with dividends and the stock price goes up. I am a stockholder, so when that happens, my retirement plan gets a lot better. That dividend gets reinvested in more stock and the higher price means my 401k is even better.

That is my take on it. To me is all about responsibility. Pro-union people want to see everyone get a piece of the pie. A fair piece especially. Anti-union don't want to consider themselves responsible for the employees.

For anyone that hasn't been in a union, a union wants to make sure everyone is treated the same and fairly. That is the union's job. Anti-union people think that is interference. Again it is a matter of perception. Unions are also businesses, they take in money in dues and provide a service. They are under the same financial pressures any business has, if not more, so unions understand both sides of the busuness. A union has to run a s business and provide a service and also take care of their members. Anti-union people think unions don't know what it is like to run a business and that is not correct. Anyone who thinks pro-union people don't understand the complexity of running a business are wrong. Union leaders have to do their 8-5 job or whatever their job is and also run a business on the side as well. Anti-union people see unions as a threat and and they don't realize unions leaders are business leaders also. Pro-union people realize that both sides of the labor/management equation have to work together. Anti-union people see unions as a dividing force that only cares for the union member.

So that is it for me. Pro-union is pro-business, pro-cooperation. It is the whole that matters to the union. Anti-union is one sided, only seeing labor as a tool, not a partner in business. Pro-union is "we survive and prosper together". Anti-union is "survival of the fittest".

Answer 3

From my personal experiences, I find that pro-union people don't really understand business. Businesses provide jobs; not unions. Business must make a decent profit to stay in business. If wages or benefits are too high, they can't make enough profit to pay bills.

I'm not anti-union ... I just understand the complexity of running a business.