Free Essay for You: Labor Unions and OSHA

Question 1: Labor Unions

There has been a decline in the membership of unions. Workers at the Nissan plant Canton refused to join a union in August 2016. The officials of the union stated that the company was scaring its employees. However, a look at the current trend shows that most workers have been turning down unionization calls. In 2016, employees of Boeing and Advance Auto Parts also refused to accept unionization calls. Unions are losing their relevance and are not necessary in today's work environment.

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There are four main reasons why employees are reluctant on joining labor unions. The first reason is transience. Nowadays, most employees do not wish to continue working in the same job for ten or fifteen years like in the past (Holley, Jennings &Wolters, 2005). Irrespective of the salaries or working conditions, people get tired and decide to try new things. It, therefore, becomes pointless joining a union if one will only work in a company for a short duration of time (Lard, 2017). The second reason is mobility. Employees value their mobility and would not want it restricted in anyway. Most unions impede the mobility of workers. The third reason is independence. Although unions advocate for the rights of their members, members have to pay annual or monthly fees, and they have to abide by their stipulations. Most employees would rather wish to be independent rather than have a union control them. The fourth reason is federal workforce requirements and rules (Lard, 2017). The purpose of these federal workplace laws is to protect the employee, ensure that there is no exploitation or mistreatment of workers. These rules have taken the place of unions.

Unions fight for the rights of employees. The fact that most employees are turning down unionization calls should be a cause of concern for all labor unions. Unions need to understand that the world has changed and how the situation was in the 18th and 19th century when the need for labor unions was high is different from now. They have to ask workers why they are declining unionization calls and from the replies, develop strategies that will help them solve the problem.

Question 2: Define and Describe OSHA

During the second semester of 1999, the OHSAS18,000 regulation was published, giving rrise to the beginning of a series of international standards related to the theme "Health and Safety at Work", which complements the ISO 9000 (quality) and ISO 14.000 (Environment) series. The OHSAS 18,000 standards are a series of international voluntary standards related to occupational health and safety management, based on the development of standards 8800 of the British Standard (About Osha, 2017). The main certifying organizations in the world participated in its development, covering more than 15 countries in Europe, Asia and America. These standards seek through systematic and structured management to ensure the improvement of health and safety in the workplace.

OHSAS 18,000 is a system that provides requirements to implement an occupational health and safety management system, enabling a company to formulate a specific policy and objectives associated with the issue, considering legal requirements and information on the risks inherent to its activity (About Osha, 2017). These standards are applicable to occupational health and safety risks and to those risks related to the management of the company that may cause some type of impact on their operation and that are controllable (About Osha, 2017). The OHSAS 18,000 standards do not require requirements for their application; companies and organizations of all types and sizes, regardless of their geographical, social or cultural origin, have prepared them for application.

Some benefits that can be obtained by applying these rules are reduction of the number of injured personnel through the prevention and control of risks in the workplace. Reduce the risk of major accidents. Ensure a well-qualified and motivated workforce through the satisfaction of their employment expectations. Reduction of material lost due to accidents and undesired production interruptions. Possibility of integrating a management system that includes quality, environment, health and safety. Companies that adopt these regulations for continuous improvement, such as ISO 9,000, ISO 14,000 and now OHSAS 18,000, are benefited in the enhancement of their internal image, as external. They benefit and strengthen relations with unions and labor and social associations.

References

About OSHA. (2017). Retrieved from https://www.osha.gov/about.html on 21st Feb 2018

AFL-CIO. (2017). Key Events in Labor History. Retrieved from https://aflcio.org/about/history/labor-history-eventsHolley, W. H., Jennings, K. M., & Wolters, R. S. (2005).The labor relations process (8jth ed.).

Mason, OH: Thompson/Southwestern.

Ladd, Chris. (2017, September 4). Want To Represent Workers? Listen To Them. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/chrisladd/2017/09/04/want-to-represent-workers-listen-to-them/#4e64cfd936e8