There is another issue, can the decline in membership even be stopped?
People may just not be that interested in joining a union, when they have the choice people tend to choose, not to join.
If the manufacturing sector needs to come back as it once was, in order to boost union numbers, how do we bring back manufacturing jobs? And even that may not be enough because the manufacturing sector that does exist in Australia, has less people joining the union than before.
Advertisement
By the way, manufacturing jobs were not always good.
There is a lament for the time gone by when there was more manufacturing in this country.
The Jobs, however, could be repetitive, mind-numbing by design and unsafe.
So, should more people consider joining a union, and be actively involved in them?
The unions of course would say yes.
The Together Union for example argues that the union movement has helped "to increase standards of living, uphold the rights of women, build opportunities for Australians to spend time with their families and give everyone the right to a secure retirement with dignity."
Advertisement
There is the question over the effectiveness used by unions to achieve their goals.
If unions are important for tackling poverty though, maybe more of us should consider joining them.
The alternative view could be that many people are just not interested in joining a union.
Discuss in our Forums
See what other readers are saying about this article!
Click here to read & post comments.
10 posts so far.