OPINION
When Karl Marx stayed up nights in the late 1840s writing Das Capital, labor disputes had been going on for a thousand years and more.
Collegiums, which included trade guilds, were part of the life and law of Imperial Rome, allowing associations to act as legal entities, like the corporations of today.
They included shipbuilders, priestly fraternities, and even artists.
Some of the oldest trade unions still in existence today are found in London, England, where their order of precedence is set in stone by the dates on their royal charter.
The oldest, The Worshipful Company of Weavers, has a royal charter from King Henry II dated 1155.
They exist because, time after time, in hundreds of places where commerce had been around a while, there reached a point where business owners were able to underpay their employees and reap enormous profits.
Invariably, this tended to result in laborers barely eking-out an existence while working every-last hour of the day, while the owner class luxuriated in permanent, or at least extended, leisure.
Such a situation had been around for quite some time when the US Congress took up the issue of making Labor Day a federal holiday in 1894.
In that era, it was typical for an American laborer to have only Sundays, Christmas and Independence Day off work, for example, and there was absolutely no expectation of a vacation.
Maybe 54 days off total. And the holidays were often unpaid as well.
In fact, at lot of businesses of this time, being sick two days in a row could get you fired.
Bear in mind also that a goodly percentage of the American workforce at that time were actual children and adolescents, driving adult wages down even more.
By this time, labor unions had been active in Texas for nearly 60 years.
The First Labor Union in Texas
Not long after Anglos arrived in the Austin and DeWitt colonies in Texas de Mexico, newspapers quickly became a profitable enterprise in most new towns, with more than one press likely to be operating in any sizable settlements.
By 1836, the typesetters that painstakingly made printing possible in that era were so overworked and underpaid that they formed a union to do something about it.
In April of 1838, they invited all the print-shop workers in the Republic of Texas to join the Texas Typographical Association, and they staged Texas’ first strike in the fall of that year, winning a much-needed 25-percent wage increase.
A widening unionization movement took hold in the Lone Star State a generation later, on the eve of secession, as several trades unionized. In Galveston, a carpenter’s union formed that still exists today.
Knowing a good idea when they read about one, other skilled tradesmen living in poverty decided they could improve their lot in life through collective bargaining.
Labor organizations were responsible for improving life for many workers in Texas, and had an important influence on lawmakers, as seen by the mechanic’s lien laws that protected sole proprietors, established under the Republic of Texas by Article 16, Section 37 of the Texas Constitution, granting liens for a direct claim against property for nonpayment of services.
Union Workers Demand Better Treatment, and They Get It
Compared with non-union employees, the employer-provided health insurance, dental plans, life insurance, and pensions received by union members during of an entire career has a significant cash value, which can be set against the dues and union funds they contribute to.
According to estimates from the Department of Labor, workers who obtain union membership for the duration of their careers earn a predicted $1.3 million more than a non-union counterpart, when considering the combination of higher wages, more generous benefits, and greater job security achieved through collective bargaining.
According to data from the Bureau of Labor, union workers receive a double-digit wage premium, with median earnings for non-union employees at about 85-percent of what union members earned in 2024.
According to a 2023 report from the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees the difference amounts to roughly $10,000 annually for union workers.
According to Department of Labor data, lifetime union members earned an estimated $3.4 million (in 2021 dollars), compared to $2.1 million for non-union workers.
When it comes to healthcare, union member’s coverage is more comprehensive with fewer out-of-pocket expenses, and union membership historically has also come with vested retirement benefits
According to one estimate, 96 percent of union workers receive employer-provided health insurance, compared to only 69 percent of non-union workers.
According to government data, 82 percent of union members have access to an employer-provided retirement plan, while less than half of non-union workers do — 48 percent. Only 8 percent of non-union private sector workers have a pension.
Although often overlooked, the pensions offered by unions are a key benefit, paying a guaranteed income in retirement.
A pension with a typical 2-percent multiplier may provide tens of thousands of dollars in guaranteed yearly retirement income.
Who Should be in a Union?
If you’ve ever gone hat-in-hand to your boss and asked for the raise you deserve, only to be told they’re not giving any raises this year, you understand the lack of power associated with individual bargaining.
Anyone who wants a collective voice to help them get the wages, benefits, and working conditions they deserve should consider joining a union.
Specific eligibilities depend on industry and position, as federal law excludes some workers like agricultural and domestic employees and managers from membership.
For the most part, workers in both the private and public sectors, including professionals, skilled trades, service workers, and government employees, can form or join unions to gain a legally enforceable say in workplace issues.
Many American professions have unions, and are allowed to enjoy the benefits afforded by union membership, including Hollywood actors and movie professionals, professional athletes from every sport, police and fire departments, teachers, nurses, electricians, more.
Thank a Union Member
According to the Service Employees International Union, representing approximately 2 million members in healthcare, public service, and property services sectors, all American workers can thank labor unions for:
- Weekends without work
- All breaks at work, including your lunch breaks
- Paid vacation
- Family & Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
- Sick leave
- Social Security
- Minimum wage
- Civil Rights Act/Title VII – prohibits employer discrimination
- 8-hour work day
- Overtime pay
- Child labor laws
- Occupational Safety & Health Act (OSHA)
- 40-hour work week
- Workers’ compensation (workers’ comp)
- Unemployment insurance
- Pensions
- Workplace safety standards and regulations
- Employer health care insurance
- Collective bargaining rights for employees
- Wrongful termination laws
- Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA)
- Whistleblower protection laws
- Employee Polygraph Protection Act (EPPA) – prohibits employers from using a lie detector test on an employee
- Veteran’s Employment and Training Services (VETS)
- Compensation increases and evaluations (i.e. raises)
- Sexual harassment laws
- Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA)
- Holiday pay
- Employer dental, life, and vision insurance
- Privacy rights
- Pregnancy and parental leave
- Military leave
- The right to strike
- Public education for children
- Equal Pay Acts of 1963 & 2011 – requires employers pay men and women equally for the same amount of work
- Laws ending sweatshops in the United States
