A PRIMER ON UNIONIZATION MOTIVES

RICHARD L. COFFINBERGER

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DOI: 10.2190/TWHT-6WKF-JWFF-36P2

Abstract

Union membership expanded rapidly for two decades following promulgation of the National Labor Relations Act. However, during the last quarter century, while absolute union membership has increased, union membership as a percentage of the total labor force ahs decreased steadily. This paper examines the literature in both the private and public sectors regarding why workers join unions, in an attempt to identify the implications of these studies for evaluating organizing strategies. It is concluded that less reliance should be placed on individual contacts in the public sector while the traditional reliance on social as well as economic and psychological motivations is more appropriate in the private sector.

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