Belonging to a union provides workers with ‘more clout’

By LegalMatters Staff • Being unionized can have a big impact on job satisfaction, providing benefits that come with strength in numbers, says Toronto employment lawyer Jeffrey M. Andrew.

“The chief benefit of being unionized is this thing called collective bargaining, which means you are basically represented by a union and you and your fellow employees – through the union – can bargain with the employer to reach an enforceable collective agreement that sets your terms and conditions of employment. It gives you more clout,” says Andrew, co-managing partner with Cavalluzzo LLP. “When you are not unionized you have an individual contract of employment with your employer. For most employees, not all, that gives you pretty minimal bargaining leverage.”

But the benefits of being unionized go beyond collective bargaining, he says.

Lack of input

“When the employers make decisions in a non-union workplace you usually don’t have much input and if you feel you have been mistreated, whether it is in terms of a promotion, a wage increase, an assignment, changes to pay, benefits and working conditions or if you get accused of wrongdoing there’s very little you can do practically speaking,” Andrew tells LegalMattersCanada.ca.

While Ontario’s Occupational Health and Safety Act, Employment Standards Act and the Ontario Human Rights Code offer non-union workers some protection as they do with unionized workers, there are limits, he says.

“Most importantly if the employer is doing something to compromise your health and safety, violating your human rights, failing to meet minimum employment standards or engaging in harassment, threats of violence or violence there are statutory complaint processes,” says Andrew. “In many other cases for non-union workers you will feel your options are very limited if you are really unhappy with the way you are treated. For most employees, you need the paycheque to pay the rent or the mortgage. Because you don’t have a lot of power, you will likely feel the choice is to put up with it or move on.”

You can sue if you feel your employment agreement has been violated by the employer, but that is costly. And if you want to keep the job, suing won’t foster a good employment relationship he adds.

Unionized workers have a union to represent them and advance their complaints through a grievance process, and to protect them from reprisals, Andrew says.

More equitable workplaces

For unionized employees the threat of withdrawing labour, which is permitted legally, can result in a collective agreement that leads to a more equitable workplace, he says.

However, Andrew explains that while the threat of a strike can be an effective bargaining tool, they are not as common as some may think.  

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“Strikes are the exception and not the norm. The main misconception is if you are unionized you are going to have to go on strike. For the most part, unions don’t want a work stoppage if they can avoid it,” he says. “They don’t want to see the business fail. Strikes lead to wage loss for employees so unions, and for the most part employers, are trying to reach a collective agreement and in the vast majority of cases, that’s exactly what they do.

“Some people go through their work-life and never go on strike,” Andrew adds. “Most employers and unions are able to reach an agreement which involves compromise on both sides without a work stoppage.”

Through their bargaining power, unionized workers can negotiate better wages, benefits and working conditions than non-union employees, he says.

For their part, members are encouraged to share their voices, Andrew says.

‘Want an active membership’

“Unions generally want an active membership,” he says. “They want to know what members’ concerns are, they want them to come out to meetings and to vote on proposed collective agreements or vote when electing the officers of the union.”

Unionized workers must also pay dues.

“Essentially the goal of the dues is to pay for the operations of the union but also to build up strike funds. Unions take money and set it aside for a rainy day,” Andrew says.

Dues also go to cover legal expenses for workers who have an issue with the employer.

“For example, if you have a grievance that goes to arbitration hearing you are represented by the union,” he says. “If you have a dispute with your employer and you are not unionized, for the most part you have to pay for your own legal advice, which could cost several thousands of dollars depending on the issue, which is not an easy thing to absorb for most workers.

“When you’re in a union you pay dues like all of your colleagues and that’s what funds the union.”

This is the first of a two-part series on unions. Next month, Jeffrey M. Andrew discusses how to unionize a workplace.