INTRODUCTION:


            Trade unionism is a concept that emerged as early as 18th century and kept a strong existence for almost 200 years, and yet for a time, concerned sectors were worried about the steady decline trade Unionism in UK since the 1980s. (2002) reported that over a period of twenty years, Britain experienced a rapid decrease in the number of its Trade Union groups and members after reaching the peak levels – approximately 13 million people (58 % of employees) in 1979. This essay will revolve around this statement by . The main questions aimed to be answered by this study are: What are the possible reasons for this decline? What solutions can be recommended? What steps are actually planned/taken by concerned parties? Based on the current situation and the progress being made, how do we visualize the future of Trade Union in Britain?


 


Overview of concept: TRADE UNION


Union in the field of employment generally refers to an association of workers. The purpose of such organization is to improve the working environment, social condition and economic status of its members (employees) by means of representation and collective bargaining with employers ( 2006). Unions are in a good position to accomplish these aims due to the majority power and the dependence of companies on its workforce. Trade Union may be classified in two: craft union and industrial union. Craft union members all belong to the same specific kind of work (miners, carpenters) while Industrial union members are workers from the same industry (automobile production, canned goods manufacturing). In some reference, different terms for these types are used but basically mean the same thing; horizontal union means the same as craft union and vertical union for industrial union ( 2006).


 


The concept of trade union is always linked to industrial relations, thus the systems theory has a direct bearing on the purpose and action of trade unions. System theory deals with dynamic issues of relationships, structures, and interdependence (Katz and Kahn, 1966). The main feature of trade union is its ability to engage in “collective bargaining” with the employer. The structure of industrial relationship between employer and employee indicates that the former has the better position. The imbalance was brought about insecurity in economic status, authoritarianism, and the inequality of bargaining power (1886). Three alternative system of employment relationships were visualized based on three different opinions of experts. The first suggestion states that competition in wages should be eliminated through the process of collective bargaining of the trade union( 1897). The next one points out that industrial democracy is a goal that must be realized by means of the trade union (1920). The last ideal in employment relation is the adoption of programs that ease the insecurities brought about by unemployment ( 1921).  The effort of trade unions in pushing for employment condition changes is more effective than if individual worker would approach management.


 


Statistical Data indicating Trade Union decline


Data collected by independent survey group, government agency, and the union itself indicates a steady decrease in both union number and members. In a tabular report produced by UK’s Department of Trade and Industry, the number of union groups and the number of members from 1975 to 2002 were presented and showed that: in 1975, the number of union group in Great Britain was 446 and membership was 11.7 million; in 1979, the peak level of 475 union group and 13.2 million members was reached; in 2002, the levels dropped to 213 union group and 7.7 million members (2004). This shows a drop of 4 million (30%) in membership and 262 groups (45%) in the number of unions. It was suggested by the Labor Force Survey (LFS) that the number of union members during 1990 makes up 38 % of the total employees while in 1998, the percentage dropped to 29 % and remained stable at that level despite the passing of new laws recognizing the union ( 2003). Since 1998, the rate of decline has somewhat slowed down. The latest Trade Union Membership report of DTI for autumn 2004 includes the following observations: the percent decrease in union membership from 2003 to 2004 is just 0.5 percent; one in every five employees in the private sector is a member of a union while three in every five employee in the public sector belongs to a union; 48.4 & of employees work in an workplace where a trade union exist (2005).


 


Possible Factors in the Trade Union Decline


It is the opinion of many experts that the decline in trade unionism is not limited to UK alone, that it is in fact a global occurrence especially on countries engaged in industrialization since the 1990s ( 2003). There are many reasons presented by experts on why this is happening.  The attitude of the employer toward a union group in their firm is considered as one of the major factors. The main purpose of forming a trade union after all, is to have a body representing the voice of the employees, a main pathway of communication from employees to employer The help of trade union would give employees a way of which to counter the imbalance in industrial employment relations, enabling them to negotiate in issues of compensation for example. The virtual power is lost if employers take a position of resistance. Without power, the union cannot survive. There is a marked difference in the way that employers may react toward trade unions.  (1994) points out that employers engage in exporting have a tendency to be tougher in its relationship with union group than those employers who only competes in the domestic market.  He classified employer’s attitude toward unions into three: showing active hostility to trade union, accepting union’s existence pragmatically, and believing in the virtue of cooperating with trade unions (1994).  If employers refuse to recognize the trade unions within the firm, there is no way that negotiations can proceed and this may discourage the formation of new trade union. Reports have shown that the union decline during the 1980s can be attributed to the decreasing level of union recognition by employers, which in turn, may have been influenced by the Conservative Government’s introduction of a range of  legislative measures deemed to be anti-union (1995).  Government attitude was therefore pointed out as another contributing factor. Labor laws are as big a factor as the attitude of the employer. Political help would have been the other option that the opposed union can turn to, but if the legislation sides with the business firms, the morale of the union will decrease for sure. In addition to employers’ attitude and government policies, the union itself may serve as a factor that affects the opportunity to unionize, based on the union’s preferences on which employees to include in the organization.


 


            Another theory suggests that the decline does not only indicate a lack of opportunity to unionize, but also the lack of interest to unionize by employees themselves, especially for young people (2003). It is possible that the decrease in new membership shows the lack of motivation and willingness by the workers sector to join an unclear cause. The change in employee’s work attitude and perception of trade union also contributes to the low number of union membership. For example, women workers and part time employees were less likely to join a union.


            The changing nature of business process poses some difficulties for organizers to form a trade union too. The previous manufacturing industries which foster strong unionism are being overshadowed by new modern industries. Coal mining/distribution, engineering works, and printing industries faced a decline and job lay-offs, which has a major impact on trade union membership ( 2004).  In large firms with shifting schedules, there is a difficulty of having a common time for the prospective members; it is hard to form unity in such situations. 


 


            Studies have been made about the possible effects of culture in union density. In an analysis of the four dimensions of culture which are UAI (uncertainty avoidance), IND (individualism), MAS (masculinity) , and PDI (power distance), it was  found out that culture is also an important determinant of union density ( 2004).


 


Current changes in trade union status


Although the decline suffered by trade unions in Britain had been steep up to 1989 and recovery to the previous levels seems to be far off, the level had at least stabilized. While there is little improvement to be seen just yet, efforts are being made in restoring the strength of the union. Despite the changing trend in the types of industries appearing today, the business environment is starting to be more union-friendly.  Employers are starting to be aware that after all, unions are not likely to pose a problem in industrial relations ( 2002).  The active participation of employees are now seen as essential for competitiveness. It is not enough that employees just do their job. New business principles are putting expectations on employees to strive for improvement and contribute to the overall business efforts, and these interactions would be facilitated by giving them the chance to have a direct voice in the company through recognition of trade union.  A survey made in 2002 indicated that 11 % of firms who participated in the study have recognized trade union for the first time since 1997, significantly higher than the 3% who took a new recognition of trade union during the period 1985 to 1990 ( 2005).


 


The government’s stand on trade union issues has changed since the 1997 election of the New Labor Government.  Modifications in the recruitment process are also being taken to adapt to the changed work environment.  This requires more union funds, and the issue of increasing the subscription fees was an important topic in several conferences and meeting s held by union groups. During the peak levels of unionism, there were less problems in members recruitment since the nature of the industry then promotes unionism attitude to workers naturally. Union organizers of today admit that they must take extra effort to convince workers to join their cause. A survey showed that among trade unions enjoying significant recognition from 1997 to 2000, two-thirds have reported having initiated an increased campaign effort in campaigning (2002).  It is indeed necessary because in the long period of low union presence, few workers are knowledgeable about the details of union membership. In addition, there are fewer problems in recruiting among industries that previously features strong union presence than in the new dynamic firms which have no history of union formation. The extra union funds would be useful in the information drive.


 


CONCLUSION:


            From the discussions, it was shown that the major factors that may have caused the decline in trade unionism were employer’s hostility toward unions, legislative measures that inhibit union recognition, the reduction of business focus on industries were union are most suitable, and the changing nature of the employees’ view/knowledge about trade unions.  The decline has stopped, but trade unionism is still a long way off from reaching the strength it enjoyed in 1979. The issues that contributed to the weakening of trade union were being solved in the present to avoid the recurrence of the problem, and to revive the union formation among the industries of today. Trade unions are beneficial to workers, if proper orientation and awareness would be promoted among the workers, the prospect of trade union in the UK is looking up. Who doesn’t want to have his/her opinions, complaints, and wishes heard out after all?


 



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