Trade Unions in the UK I A Level and IB Economics

Summary

This video focuses on trade unions in the UK, highlighting their role in protecting workers' rights, improving wages, and ensuring fair working conditions. Trade unions are pivotal in collective bargaining, offering support for unfair dismissal claims, workplace safety, and pensions, especially during financial struggles. The video also discusses the decline in union membership over the years, influenced by changes in employment laws, the rise of flexible work contracts, and the shift from manufacturing to service industries. Despite this decline, the video emphasizes the ongoing importance of unions in advocating for workers' interests.

Takeaways

• 😀 Trade unions are organized groups of workers who represent and protect the rights of employees through collective bargaining.
• 😀 The primary function of trade unions is to protect and improve the wages and living standards of their members.
• 😀 Unions also work to protect employees against unfair dismissal and provide legal support for workers' rights.
• 😀 Trade unions promote better working conditions, improved work-life balance, and intervene in workplace health and safety issues.
• 😀 Another key role of unions is to advocate for better workplace training, education, and the accumulation of human capital.
• 😀 Unions play a critical role in protecting pension rights for members, especially in cases of financial difficulties within businesses.
• 😀 The largest unions in the UK are Unison and Unite, both representing public service sectors with over a million members each.
• 😀 The public sector dominates union membership, with many members working in local authorities, central government, or nationalized industries.
• 😀 Union membership in the UK has been declining over the past 15 years, with less than a quarter of workers being union members by 2015.
• 😀 Factors contributing to the decline in union membership include changes in employment laws, the rise of flexible labor contracts, and a decrease in manufacturing jobs.
• 😀 Globalization has also contributed to the decline in union membership, as multinational corporations often do not recognize or allow union activities.

Q & A

What is a trade union?

A trade union is an organized group of employees or workers who act together to represent and protect the rights of workers, typically through collective bargaining.

What role do trade unions play in the labor market?

Trade unions play a significant role in the labor market by using collective bargaining with employers to protect their members, improve living standards, and address issues such as unfair dismissal, working conditions, and health and safety.

What was the membership size of trade unions in the UK in 2013?

In 2013, just over 7 million people were registered as members of a trade union in the UK.

What are the main functions of trade unions?

The main functions of trade unions include protecting and improving real wages, defending workers against unfair dismissal, promoting better working conditions, advocating for a better work-life balance, and improving workplace training and education.

What is the role of trade unions in protecting pensions?

Trade unions work to protect the pension rights of their members, especially in cases where businesses are facing financial difficulties, as seen with companies like BHS.

Which trade unions were the largest in the UK in 2014?

In 2014, the largest trade unions in the UK were Unison and Unite, both of which were public service unions with over a million members each.

Which sectors have the highest union membership in the UK?

Most trade union members in the UK work in the public sector, including local authorities, central government, and nationalized industries.

What has caused the decline in union membership in the UK?

Union membership in the UK has declined due to factors such as changes in employment laws, the rise of flexible labor contracts like zero hours and part-time jobs, growth in self-employment, and a decline in the manufacturing sector.

How has globalization affected trade unions in the UK?

Globalization has contributed to the decline of trade unions in the UK, as many multinational corporations do not recognize unions or allow them to function.

What is 'union density' and how has it changed in the UK?

Union density refers to the percentage of people in work who are members of a union. In the UK, union density has fallen significantly from around a third of workers in 1995 to less than a quarter by 2015.