COMPANY UNIONS, WAGES, AND WORK HOURS

Abstract

The topic of company unions – employee associations sponsored and organized by management – has generated strong feelings. For many years, conventional labor unions have been vehemently opposed to worker representation through company unions.¹ Conventional labor unions have viewed company unions as devices by management to forestall or thwart independent unionism (i.e. unions organized by workers).² According to this interpretation, a company union would give the appearance of providing employees with representation and induce workers to temper their demands for genuine collective bargaining. Thus, at their Annual Convention of 1919, the American Federation of Labor described company unions as “…a delusion and a snare, set up by the companies for the express purpose of deluding the workers into the belief that they have some protection and thus have no need for trade union organization: therefore be it Resolved, That we disapprove and condemn all such company unions and advise our membership to have nothing to do with them…” (Quoted in Douglas, 1919, p. 103).

Citation

Pencavel, J. (2003), "COMPANY UNIONS, WAGES, AND WORK HOURS", Advances in Industrial & Labor Relations (Advances in Industrial & Labor Relations, Vol. 12), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 7-38. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0742-6186(03)12002-1