There Is Power in a Union, What Unions No Longer Do

There is little disputing the power of the labor movement throughout much of the 20th century. Unions and the movement as a whole were able to secure incredible victories for workers—from safe work, to the 8-hour workday, to the passage of the National Labor Relations Act, to a guaranteed minimum wage and overall improved conditions of work. However, by the end of the 20th century, much of this power had waned. Union density had experienced a dramatic decline since its height in the middle of the century, and concessionary bargaining had become the norm. Labor researchers began exploring the reasons for this declining power and effects of such decreased power among unions. Books such as the seminal work from Mike Parker and Martha Gruelle (Labor Notes, 1999)  Democracy Is Power argued for the need for democracy in unions to restore power. In a similar vein, Julius Getman (Restoring the Power of Unions: It Takes a Movement, 2000) argued that unions could indeed still be powerful, but they needed to be both democratic and willing to take strong, concerted actions, using Unite Here as a model. Rosenfeld, in What Unions No Longer Do, presents evidence that the waning power of unions has led to an increase in socioeconomic and racial inequality and sees restoration of a powerful labor movement, “the most prominent and effective voice for economic justice in the United States,” as the only path to address these issues of inequality.