Across the United States, labor strikes are starting to appear in multiple areas… due to the actions of companies/corporations in addition to our tough economy. Workers should Unionize to protect their rights, and improve their conditions and wages.

Labor unions are groups formed by workers to protect their trades, rights, and interests. They’re formed most commonly to negotiate with employers for better wages and conditions. While it is legal for employers to convince workers to not unionize, it is illegal to prevent unionization through threats, violent or not.

Before we get on the rise of labor strikes, we need to understand what a labor strike is. A labor strike is when employees stop working for their employer and used it as a bargaining tool. It can happen in response to unfair wages, bad working conditions, or any workplace grievance.

Across the United States, labor strikes seem to be popping up in multiple areas. Some are for the betterment of workers’ mental health, such as the Stanford Nurse Strike. Many are for unfair or bad labor practices.

The most common driver of labor strikes is the issue of wages. High inflation and rising prices have made it difficult for many low-paid workers to make ends meet. It’s clear the companies are overworking workers while not giving them sufficient pay. Now, they feel threatened that their employees want to unionize to protect their rights. As a result, corporations are attempting to delay unionization by bargaining with workers to not unionize. This has been done by changing workplace policies to placate employees. For example, Amazon is now letting their employees take their phones inside the job.

Despite these delays or bargains, the employees/workers must unionize to get better treatment and pay. This is because it is clear that unions are needed to protect the common people. Without unions, companies are comfortable pushing workers around.

Moreover, unions have greatly benefitted the lives of workers historically in this country. Over the past two centuries, labor unions have put pressure on the government to mandate eight-hour workdays, ban child labor, and institute five-day work weeks. This history alone shows what unions are capable of if they make enough noise.

In conclusion, labor unions are necessary because it prevents companies from overworking their employees and in the process paying them little, and the labor strikes going around the country are a direct result of their exploitation/getting comfortable. And labor strikes are necessary to fight back or force the employers to negotiate as they are a must to protect the average employee.