Organized Labor

Issue

   Organized labor (unions) allowed workers to engage in collective bargaining agreements to attain higher pay, better working conditions, and receive additional benefits. However, is allowing workers the ability to go on strike and "strong arm" their employers for money that good of a policy for the nation?

Solution

   Unions have contributed to the rising cost of products that some goods have become unattainable for the average consumer. For example, the average cost of an automobile has risen over the years due to union demands for higher wages and benefits. Auto companies had to consider alternatives such as moving jobs overseas or automating plants with robotics in order to lower costs and stay competitive with other companies.

   Another concern is that union workers who go on strike may negatively affect the rest of the nation. For example, transportation-related unions (e.g., railway, shipping, trucking) have an enormous influence on a wide range of products due to their supply chain needs. If any of these unions go on strike, it causes a cascading effect on other industries that don't directly benefit from the union's negotiations. This causes an unfair amount of influence that a particular union has on the rest of the nation.

   From the legal perspective, workers who go on strike with the intention to threaten companies or their businesses will fail are essentially committing extortion. Legislation should be considered that will allow the Justice Department to file criminal charges against striking workers to prevent this type of activity that negatively affects the business.

   Some may say that unions should exist for the sake of a worker's civil rights, however, workers who go on strike with the purpose to negatively affect a business is immoral to say the least. In other words, workers may find another job if they are unsatisfied with their current employment, however, they do not have the right to hinder the business itself (which is criminal).

   In a pure democracy that will no longer be influenced by corrupt officials, voters will need to decide if union workers (who are the minority of the population) should be allowed to extort businesses with their demands, or if unions should be banned in their entirety to prevent such criminal conduct.