Title: Lecture Materials: (CU3 M2) American Labor History & Collective Bargaining
Course: SkillsCom BA 224 15.1 > Section: Credit Unit 3 Module 2

- American Labor History: Part One
- American Labor History: Part Two
- The Bargaining Table

This Video gives an in-depth look at labor unions and the history of labor unions. You are only required to watch the first 5 minutes of this Video, however you are encouraged to watch the whole Video. Self-check questions will only be asked on material from the first 5 minutes.

You are only required to watch the first 5 minutes of this Video, however you are encouraged to watch the whole Video. Self-check questions will only be asked on material from the first 5 minutes.

Additional Information for Review:

- Right-to-work laws don't outlaw unions. They do outlaw (within those states) any form of union security. Right to work is a term used to describe state statutory or constitutional provisions banning the requirement of union membership as a condition of employment.
- Under the closed shop form of union security, the company can hire only current union members. Congress outlawed closed shops in interstate commerce in 1947, but they still exist in some states for particular industries (such as printing). They account for fewer than 5% of union contracts.
- Recent median weekly wages for union workers was $917, while that for nonunion workers was $717. Union workers also generally receive significantly more holidays, sick leave, unpaid leave, insurance plan benefits, long-term disability benefits, and various other benefits than nonunion workers do. Union membership is not exclusive to blue-collar workers.
- Union membership has fallen since the 1970s. Reasons include the shift from manufacturing to service jobs, and new legislation, such as occupational safety laws, provides the sorts of protections that workers could once only obtain from their unions.
- Some people call Costco "The Anti-Walmart," partly because of how Costco treats its workers and unions. When California grocery store workers picketed several chains a few years ago, Costco Wholesale Corp. avoided the fray, quietly renegotiating a separate contract with its union employees there.In contrast, Walmart is famously anti-union.

The American collective bargaining system embraces at least three characteristics distinctive to industrial relations in the United States. Perhaps the most significant is that our system of industrial relations is highly decentralized.

The Bargaining Table (Webpage)