Boosting Worker Rights: Bidens Push for Increased Union Membership

Abstract

Labor Law/Rights to Unionize Background One can argue that a labor union is an association of workers formed to negotiate collectively with employers. Labor union aims to protect and further workers' interests and rights. While considering President Biden’s move, one can argue that the administrative proposal aims at enhancing workers' satisfaction for all Americans. In a report in Los Angeles Times by Josh Boak dated 7 February 2022, it is clear that only a few American workers belong to a union standing at 10.3% in 2021, which is a massive drop from 20.1% in 1993. The difference between unionized members in 1993 and 2021 indicates that the union has not been attracting American workers or has severe limitations to access and associations with the unions. It is a situation that the current American President wishes to change, arguing that the decade-long drops in union membership have coincided with a rising share of income that favors the impression of Americans towards the union. Biden believes that the American dream defines the need for shared privileges amongst all Americans, leading to the proposal that American workers can join the union if given a chance to vote. The President wants the American workers to enjoy the benefits associated with a union, like job control, where the workers enjoy the power of negotiating for more favorable working conditions, among other privileges, through collective bargaining. According to (Frymer and Grumbach (2021), labor unions are not there to benefit a few but rather to cater to all American workers as the most powerful labor unions that President Biden wants workers to unionize with operating under the American government umbrella. American Federation of Labor (AFL) and Congress of Industrial Organization (CIO) are the main labor unions in the United States of America that President Biden believes can help change the perception of workers' attitudes towards their employees and their working conditions significantly. One can argue that joining the union can positively or negatively impact American workers. A positive impact is that most work-related problems like low wages, long working hours, and unsanitary working conditions can be solved promptly. However, the same union can work against the employees, especially in areas like pay, by organizing strikes to change the conditions, especially when the union is private. It is quite a relief as President Biden's proposal seems to favor government union joining, which would only enhance the maintenance of healthy working conditions for all employees at current and in the future, thus the need to unionize. Analyzing President Biden's administrative proposal from the COVID-19 era workers' experiences is essential. According to a report by Celine McNicholas and others on Economic Policy Institute, it is clear that unionized employees during the COVID-19 pandemic enjoyed benefits like safety measures, additional premium pay, sick leave pay, and work share arrangements to save jobs (McNicholas et al., 2020). It is also imperative to note that unionized workers earn higher than un-unionized workers while the unionized black and...