Pro's & Cons of union membership?

cazziebo

There are different perceptions of unions but I have to say if membership is available then there are so many benefits to joining. Union membership is invaluable - beyond price - if you ever get into any kind of trouble such as disciplinary, grievance or redundancy issues. Outside of that, there are often other fringe benefits such as discounts on a wide range of products and services. I believe Unison is a very good union.

For an individual, then I don't see any downsides. I'm not getting into the wider political arguments....

LandyAndy

cazziebo wrote: »

There are different perceptions of unions but I have to say if membership is available then there are so many benefits to joining. Union membership is invaluable - beyond price - if you ever get into any kind of trouble such as disciplinary, grievance or redundancy issues. Outside of that, there are often other fringe benefits such as discounts on a wide range of products and services. I believe Unison is a very good union.

For an individual, then I don't see any downsides. I'm not getting into the wider political arguments....

..............is absolutely correct.

seven-day-weekend

...and if you don't want any of your subs to go to the Labour Party you can opt to join the 'non-political fund' for a slightly lower subscription but still have all the benefits.

That's what I did when I was in Unison as a Local Government employee.

I never needed their services, but my husband found his Union, the NUT, invaluable when he was on long-term sickness, due to their contact with him throughout, negotiating a jobshare post for him when it was time for him to go back, and helping him get his pension promptly when he later took early retirement.

All those things he COULD have done himself, but after having suffered a mental health illness, it was far less stressful for the Union to do it for him.

However, I'm not sure how much of it was due to the one bloke who dealt with him all the way through, who was terrific and went way beyond the call of duty (thanks Paul) , or whether he would have had the same help whoever he'd had.

Hope this helps.

(Edited to add: The one day Unison were on strike while I was a member I had already booked some annual leave, so didn't have to join in with it!).

bionic_dad

cazziebo, landy Andy. seven day weekend big big thanks this is kinda what I want to get a grasp on

bionic mum is with the NUT and has found them hit & miss on the occaisions she's needed their services been very helpful & supportive then completely useless on other issues.

Andy_L

Mr_Falling_Star wrote: »

if a strike is called you have to go on strike, whether you agree with the ballot result or not

No you don't. You should as you're undermining the Unions position, but you don't have to

Mr_Falling_Star

Andy_L wrote: »

No you don't. You should as you're undermining the Unions position, but you don't have to

This is true, you don't have to. But neither do individual union reps have to represent you if you have a problem. Normally what will happen is that they will get a full time officer to make some sort of half hearted attempt to defend you and your scabby behind

snitch

I'm a workplace rep for Unite and can give anecdotal evidence that people really feel supported by our work even when we don't manage to get concessions on their behalf. Union membership is relevant beyond the individual context though - one can see from the example of Australia that there is constant pressure for backsliding in standards and conditions that requires the intervention of organised labour. Additionally, bullying in the workplace is actually on the rise, and union representatives are essential as independent arbiters in these situations.

It is important to remember though that individual workplaces are only one level of union engagement - they are the basis of the campaigning that also has to happen up to Government level and in international organisations on behalf of workers' human rights.

amandada

I've been a union member for 17 years, and have always looked on it as an "insurance policy". In my previous employment I didn't need to call on their services, to the point that I didn't know who my union rep was (although I know I could have found out easily enough)
My current (public service) emplyer is a totally different matter-I've had to call on the union's support many many times, over many different issues, as have many of my colleagues, so I've been really glad of my insurance policy

floss2

Dippychick wrote: »

Yeah join a Union.. go on.. lots of public services locally have been closed down thanks to Union strikes so it seems you will have lots of paid days off.....

You don't get paid if you are on strike......remember "Brassed Off" & the financial troubles as a result of the Miners' strike?

Recent public sector strikes have saved the employers quite a lot of money just because they don't need to pay salary AND pension contributions for those strike days.

DKLS

Unions are pretty toothless these days and from my own experiences are only there to serve their own agenda and not the workers, I wouldnt bother.