Trade Unions
What do you understand by the following words: negotiate, grievances, collective bargaining
NEGOTIATE
= discuss something in order to reach an agreement;
GRIEVANCES
= the things that people are unhappy about;
COLLECTIVE BARGAINING
= a system where one person or a small group of people negotiate on behalf of a large group.
ROLES OF TRADE UNIONS
Ø The main role is to protect workers’ rights.
Ø To organise workers in a particular industry in a single bargaining unit.
Ø To serve as a force to the bargaining power of employers.
Ø To embark on industrial actions after collective bargaining and mediation or arbitration fail over labour disputes.
Ø To promote changes to government policies that affect workers – policy issues such as minimum wages, retirement age and the maximum working hours.
Ø To be able to carry out their function in the work place i.e. to visit members in their work places to recruit and to inspect working conditions.
Ø To ensure safety of their members in the work place through safety regulations which employers must follow?
RESPONSIBILITIES OF TRADE UNIONS
Ø To look after their members’ interest
Ø To gain control over labour supply
Ø To ensure skills development for their members takes place in the work place.
Ø To ensure no discrimination against their members occurs in the work place.
Ø To maintain good relations with employers and workers
Ø To give workers good advice
Ø To negotiate with employers in a peaceful manner and not to cause disruption to production
Ø To help businesses grow and to create more jobs
Ø Consider the rights of communities where workers live
Support Material
Trade Unions
Roles:
The main role is to protect workers’ rights.
To organise workers in a particular industry in a single bargaining unit.
To serve as a force to the bargaining power of employers.
To embark on industrial actions after collective bargaining and mediation or arbitration fail over labour disputes.
To promote changes to government policies that affect workers – policy issues such as minimum wages, retirement age and the maximum working hours.
To be able to carry out their function in the work place i.e. to visit members in their work places to recruit and to inspect working conditions.
To ensure safety of their members in the work place through safety regulations which employers must follow?
Responsibilities:
To look after their members’ interest
To gain control over labour supply
To ensure skills development for their members takes place in the work place.
To ensure no discrimination against their members occurs in the work place.
To maintain good relations with employers and workers
To give workers good advice
To negotiate with employers in a peaceful manner and not to cause disruption to production
To help businesses grow and to create more jobs
Consider the rights of communities where workers live
Rights of trade unions |
Responsibilities of trade unions |
Example: Access to workers in the workplace |
Example: Collective bargaining on behalf of employees |
Holding union meetings in the workplace |
Resolve disputes between employee and employer |
Stop-order facilities against employees’ salaries to cover dues |
Taking industrial action when demands are not met |
Receiving membership dues from those who belong to the union |
Representation of employees during negotiations |
To elect shop stewards if more than 50% of workers in a workplace belong to the union |
Educating employees with regard to their rights |
To have access to information that is relevant for meetings and negotiations |
To take legal action when necessary |
Lesson Files
Lesson Questions
Activity 1
The history and role of trade unions
Answer the following questions in your class work books
a) What is a trade union?
b) When and why were trade unions first formed?
c) What are the main functions of trade unions?
Activity 2:
Define the following terms:
· Strike
· stay-away
· go-slow
· democracy
· exploitation
· negotiation
· collective bargaining
· picketing
· arbitrator
· lock-out