Trade unions are organisations that represent workers regarding their rights and best interests in the workplace.
Unions originated in the 19th century. Many were unfavoured by employers and governments because of political activism. And were often prosecuted because of it.
However, over modern times, trade unions — widely known as the labour movement — have become an integral part of improving working conditions, workers’ benefits, and much more.
But it’s not all a bed of roses. There are some drawbacks. For people who are unsure about joining unions, here are some pros and cons.
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Stronger power of negotiations for workers | Fees |
| More chance of better employee benefits | Risk of industrial action |
| Increased chance of higher wages | Members may have to unwillingly comply with votes |
| Increased health and safety regulations | Potential confrontation |
| Protection from employers | Potential inflation increase |
| Increased wages could cause unemployment |
Pros
Stronger power of negotiations for workers – Union representatives can be the voice of workers who might feel like they don’t have a voice. The representatives usually have a vast knowledge of rights, regulations, and procedures. Sometimes more so than the employers.
More chance of better employee benefits – Being a member of a union increases the chances of having better employee benefits like holiday allowance, maternity and paternity leave, private healthcare, pensions, bonuses, etc.
Increased chance of higher wages – Unions help workers receive the wage that is in line with the current market, or what’s believed that the workers deserve. This includes equal pay.
Increased health and safety regulations – Most unions have health and safety committees. These committees help to ensure there are safe practices of work in the workplace. They can also help employees receive compensation in the event of serious injuries.
Protection from employers – Unions can protect employees from things like unfair dismissal, harassment, bullying in the workplace, and withholding wages, etc.
Cons
Fees – Unfortunately, being a member of a union does require paying fees. However, the fees tend not to be excessive. They’re usually small monthly instalments.
Risk of industrial action – Sometimes, staff as a whole get unhappy with conditions. These conditions could be anything like salary, benefits, break times, facilities. It could be a single issue or a collection of grievances.
If nothing improves after frequent requests from employees, they might decide to vote for strike action.
This strike action can affect employers, in terms of costs and productivity. It can also affect the infrastructure and lives of the third parties that they are serving. To give a couple of examples, Rail strikes can affect millions of people commuting, which can have a knock-on effect. Also, if the staff of a building firm strikes, the client doesn’t get their work completed on time.
Members may have to unwillingly comply with votes – Because industrial action is most effective in numbers, union members might be forced to comply with the majority vote. If the vote is to strike, some members might not feel comfortable striking. And if they do comply, they might receive minimal or no pay.
Potential confrontations – Because union members know they have the weight of the union behind them, they can sometimes adopt a confrontational attitude towards their employers.Even if this isn’t the case, the disputes that unions fight for can cause confrontations between employers and employees.
There can also be confrontations amongst employees if any decide not to comply with voted actions, like strikes.
Potential inflation increase – If employees successfully battle to get a wage increase, other companies in the same field are often obliged to match this wage to keep their employees. This sets the new bar. Minimum wage then tends to increase. This can result in the cost of living increasing to match the nation’s higher income.
Increased wages could cause unemployment – Businesses have their set wage budgets. If they’re forced to increase their staff’s wages, this eats into their budget, which could give them the difficult decision to cut staff to reduce the outgoings.
Why do people join unions?
After assessing the pros and cons given above, why should you join a union?
Three key reasons why people join trade unions are because of wages/benefits, a voice, and health and safety.
Where employees have safety representatives and safety committees, they know that they have a voice. That makes them more willing to raise issues. Unions also help make their members more aware of safety issues in the workplace.
A 1995 case study of the relationship between worker union representation and industrial injuries in British Manufacturing showed that employers who had trade union health and safety committees had a 50% less injury rate than those who didn’t.
There was definitely an impact. In fact, the desire for safety soon took off in large proportions. Many large construction contractors implemented schemes that set targets on minimal fatalities and serious injuries in their workplaces.
Here is a list of some schemes set by contractors. (Some of these schemes may have now seized to exist or evolved into different schemes since their creation).
- Zero Harm – Balfour Beatty
- Target Zero – Carillion
- Mission Zero – Laing O’Rourke
- Beyond Zero – Bam Nuttall
With the wellbeing of site personnel in mind, most large construction sites have on-site or visiting nurses. Some even have on-site paramedics.
Aside from the safety aspect, unions can give employees peace of mind. Unions represented are usually well trained in their fields, giving them a wealth of knowledge. This knowledge gives them a powerful stance when being the voice of employees.
This voice can often stretch to tribunals, where unions represent employees. Some unions even cover the legal fees.
List of UK construction unions
- Unite the Union (UNITE) – Unite is one of the UK’s large trade unions. They represent workers across various sectors, but have a large influence in construction. The majority of construction workers choose to join UNITE, including crane operators.
- Prospect – Although Prospect doesn’t exactly deal with construction workers, they do represent people who have management roles within the construction industry, as well as professionals in engineering and technical roles.
- The Workers Union – Because their size is smaller than others, there can be a more intimate relationship between their representatives and workers, which leads to not being passed around between people. It also means there can be less red tape and paperwork.
- UNISON – UNISON deal with a wide range of sectors, although are not strong on construction. However, they do deal with utilities, such as water, gas, and electricity workers.
- GMB Union – GMB is a long-standing union that represents workers in lots of sectors, including construction.
Conclusion
Many believe that unions in the UK don’t hold as much weight as they used to. And are not as effective as in countries such as the US. However, they do provide a lot of positive attributes and services that benefit workers, particularly in the construction industry.
A poll undertaken for this article showed that there was a 50/50 split in people’s opinions on if UK unions are worth joining or not.
Think of that what you will. The best thing to do is to know what you want from a union, then research which one is best suited for your needs and sector of work.
Construction Training
Click on images for details
