When considering forming a union in your workplace, it is important to have the facts. It is very likely that management will try and give you negative or misleading information about the union and what unions do that simply is not true.

• What is a union?
• Who runs the union?
• Can we lose the benefits we have now if we unionize?
• I've heard a rumour the company could close if the union comes in.
• The company says the union is just after our dues money. Why should we pay money to the union?
• The company says the union can't guarantee us anything. Can you?

What is a union?

A union is a group of workers who join together to achieve better wages, better benefits, respect on the job, and a stronger voice in workplace decisions. With the help of a union, workers negotiate a contract with their employer that once ratified is guaranteed by law.

Without a union, employers have 100% control over its employees and complete authority to make all decisions.

Who runs the union?

You and your fellow workers are the union. Your negotiating committee is made up of members of your own workplace and you prepare your own list of improvements that will make up your contract. You elect the officers of the union and the union has full time staff representatives that ensure your employer lives up to your contract.

Can we lose the benefits we have now if we unionize?

No. Threatening to take away your benefits is a commonly used scare tactic employers use to keep workers from forming a union. The purpose of forming a union is to win improvements within the workplace, not lose them. On average, unionized workers earn a third more than non-unionized workers in wages and benefits.

I've heard a rumour the company could close if the union comes in.

Companies do not go out of business because they have a Union, or because the workers are treated fairly. Companies close because of market conditions or poor management. This is a scare tactic employers use to keep people from gaining a voice on the job.

• More non-Union companies close each year than unionized companies. Government studies have shown that a unionized firm is no more likely to close than any other company.
• With a Union contract, fair wages and working conditions, and a voice on the job, workers are more productive, and the company will probably do better, not worse.
• Another thing to keep in mind is that it is against the law for an employer to threaten to close down a company to discourage workers from organizing a Union.

The company says the union is just after our dues money. Why should we pay money to the union?

It doesn't cost, it pays, to belong! Not belonging to a Union can be expensive when you are laid off, discharged or passed by a promotion time UNFAIRLY. Only a Union contract gives you a VOICE . . . a chance to have YOUR SIDE heard and guarantees fair treatment to everyone in the workplace.

Unions are non profit organization make the dues you pay to get the guarantees and protections of a union contract are tax deductible.

One other thing to keep in mind is, since when is your employer so concerned about how you spend your money?

The company says the union can't guarantee us anything. Can you?

The Union can guarantee this: That when workers stick together as a Union, they have more bargaining power and more of a voice than they do as individuals.

We can also guarantee that

1. The union collects no money or dues until after you have a contract that is negotiated by workers in your workplace to make the improvements you want
2. All workers who are part of the bargaining unit in your workplace get to vote on a contract before it is put in place.
3. When you choose to have a union in your workplace your employer is legally obligated to negotiate a contract in good faith.