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The role of unions in the

Canadian workplace

Facts about unions

- Nearly 30% of workers belong to a union

- In Canada, they are regulated by provincial and federal legislation

- There is said to be over 100 different unions in Canada

- All Canadian unions have a constitution that must be registered with government labour boards

Having a fair union that gets along with the people they are negotiating with could be a positive thing for the employees. There is discussion over the ability of workers to join or fund the union once it is formed. Collective bargaining is a long negotiation process between employees and employers. This negotiation process takes place while the existing contract is still in place but close to the expiry date. If an agreement is not agreed upon before the previous contract expires a lockout, which is when the employers stop the workers from working, or a strike, which is when the workers choose to stop working, may occur which has happened with teachers in Ontario and in some professional sports leagues. The majority of the time an agreement is reached upon before a lockout or a strike.

In conclusion, unions could be a good thing if they negotiate the correct things. They play a major role in how the company treats it workers with regards to job security, pay, hours etc. Some companies are better off having a union and some companies are better off without a union.

Unions play a big role in the Canadian workforce. Unions help workers negotiate the conditions of the work they do. The negotiate things such as salary, working hours and safety. Before there were unions, workers were getting treated badly with low pay, long hours and unsafe working conditions. They also did not have much job security. In unionized jobs, employees work under conditions negotiated through the process of collective bargaining, in which the union negotiates with the employers on behalf of the employees. The collective agreements they negotiate include job classifications, pay, hours and workers’ health and safety. These agreements also include grievance and arbitration procedures that are designed to settle conflicts that arise.

Unions

Collective Bargaining

In Canada, labour unions have been around since the 1800s. A union is an organization that represents Canadian workers in their negotiations with employers. Labour unions engage in collective bargaining with employers to determine and solve issues such as wages, the terms and conditions of work, and worker security. They fight for the rights of workers and try to make the workplace as good as possible for each employee. Not all work places have a union that protects their rights. A work setting that has a union is considered to be “unionized”.

http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2011/03/03/n_collective_bargaining.cnnmoney/

Types of unions

-Unions are divided into two sectors. Craft Unions and Industrial Unions.

-Craft unions, which were the earliest form of union, are formed by skilled workers in a trade. They usually don’t include unskilled workers. Industrial unions include all workers, skilled and unskilled. Craft unions look to work with a trade and people that do “hands on” work.

-Industrial unions are the type of unions that focus on people who work at computers, including business people. They also represent some “hands on” workers.

Unions in Canada

- Canadian autoworkers union

- Canadian Union of public employees

- Ontario secondary school teachers federation

- Elementary teachers federation of Ontario

- National unions of public and general employees

As time went on more and more unions arose in Canada. Public sector unions and general unions occurred in the 1900’s. Nowadays, workers in unions elect local executives to supervise the work of the union. They also elect officials known to handle grievances that arise on the job. Before collective bargaining begins, workers elect a bargaining committee. The bargaining committee determines the workers’ demands and strategy that they shall use during talks with the employer. A union could be considered a committee and usually on a committee people get elected into various positions. Union are to be recognized as democratic organizations.

A lot of people who work in factories such as GM, Ford or Chrysler are unionized mostly because of their safety rights and such. There has always been a debate and it will continue on whether unions are a positive thing or a negative thing. Some people agree with what unions do and some people do not. Unionized workers in Canada include industrial and office workers and public employees in government administration and people in the hospital or school industry. Employees are less likely to be unionized in private service-sector firms such as retail stores, restaurants, banks, and insurance companies, because employers in those areas for the most part do not like unions.

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