America is in the midst of a potentially historic increase in worker organizing and collective actions. After decades of union decline, requests for the National Labor Relations Board to hold union elections were up 58% in the first eight months of 2022. Employees have mounted campaigns to unionize at companies as diverse as Starbucks, Amazon, Apple and The New York Times. Workers have also been actively expressing their discontent in other ways, including by filing petitions with top management to address employee grievances.
This is good news, given growing evidence of the need to rebalance the power between workers and management, and increase worker voice and representation. Decades of decline in union membership have contributed to increased income inequality and a decline in the share of national income going to workers. While many employers remain unconvinced that increasing worker power is good for them, new analysis suggests that businesses can reduce turnover and increase productivity by working with unions to build high-quality labor-management relationships.
We often get asked whether the current surge in worker activism will dissipate, if the economy weakens or employer resistance continues. The honest answer is — it’s too early to tell. But by looking back at previous inflection points in U.S. labor relations, we can offer some insights on what it will take to make the relationship between employees and management fairer.
The labor movement must listen to...
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