Article 23 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Article 23 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights declares that everyone has a right to form and/or join a trade union (The United Nations, 1948). The US supports this declaration in totality. Unions have an essential role to play in every workplace. Not only does a union increase the collective bargaining of the workers but also protects workers from being victims of uninformed decisions from employers like layoffs (Moeti-Lysson " Ongori, 2011). In most cases, it is always difficult for the employers to listen to the complaints made by each employee. For instance, when the organization introduces new policies that some employees may reject, the employer may not want to listen. Through unions, it is possible to have bargaining power on decisions made by the organization that has a direct impact on the employees’ wellbeing. Demanding for an increase in the number of labor hours to increase productivity without increasing the wages is one of the things that the union can fight for the employees. More so, the union makes the company invest in employees. An organization may not want to incur costs for training and development but demands for efficiency with new machines and systems.
Benefits of Unions in the Workplace
I believe unions have benefited my work environment today by improving working conditions and promoting me as an individual, family, and community well-being. Today, I work on a shift of four hours as a part-time employee. The union ensures that the organization respects this kind of arrangement, thus, I can attend to my other duties like advancing my education and spending time with my family in peace. The unions have also made it possible to work on renewable contracts. According to Hagedorn, Paras, Greenwich, and Hagopian (2016), such agreements with employers are legally binding and cannot be unilaterally changed, which assures the employee protection.
References
Hagedorn, J., Paras, C. A., Greenwich, H., " Hagopian, A. (2016). The role of labor unions in creating working conditions that promote public health. American Journal of Public Health, 106(6), 989-995.
Moeti-Lysson, J., " Ongori, H. (2011). Effectiveness of trade unions in promoting employee relations in organizations. Global Journal of Arts and Management, 1(4), 57-64.
The United Nations. (1948). Universal declaration of human rights. Retrieved from http://www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/
