Union Difference


The Social Benefits of Unionization in the Long-Term Care Sector,
May 2009, by Nari Rhee and Carol Zabin, in John Logan (ed.) Academics on Employee Free Choice: Multidisciplinary Approaches to Labor Law Reform

Since the late 1990s, unions have organized hundreds of thousands of direct-care workers, mostly in publicly funded homecare. This paper documents the positive effect of unionization on wages and benefits, and the unions' leadership in policy innovation to upgrade and stabilize the homecare workforce. The report argues that the voice of an organized workforce is key to improving direct-support jobs in order to mitigate the long-term care workforce crisis, both through collective bargaining and through partnerships for state and national policy advocacy

This report analyzes the "union difference" in family-friendly workplace policies and finds that in areas such as paid family leave, paid sick days, family health insurance, and child-care benefits unionized workers receive more generous family-friendly benefits than their nonunionized counterparts.

Study traces changes to San Francisco’s homecare labor market following recent wage increases and the extension of healthcare benefits to workers. The author profiles the workforce of in-home support services (IHSS) before and after the major changes, looking at employment figures, income, worker turnover, “match” with consumers, and worker demographics. The author concludes with a discussion of the costs to county, state, and federal government.

Article examines recent struggles to unionize the state’s homecare workers and collectively bargain for better wages and working conditions. The authors survey campaigns in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Alameda counties, noting the obstacles to success and highlighting future issues of concern. The authors find a strategy of worker organization, policy intervention, and coalition building as the key to success in all cases.

This brief presentation highlights the effect of belonging to a union on three key areas: wages; pension plans; and employer health benefits.

A survey of multi-stakeholder coalitions on today’s progressive landscape. The authors explain “social dialogue” as formal partnerships between labor, employers, and government in shaping social and economic policy. Finding this to be largely absent in the US, the authors examine various cases of labor in alliance with management alone, and with other social actors. Case studies are culled from across the nation, and range from local to national to international action.