Labour Union is a Blessing for Bangladesh

Prepared for
MGT351.9

Prepared By
Asfaque Gias -1411 768 030

Human Resource Management

Sakib Md. Shafiullah -132 041 030

Shahid Hossain

Fazlul Karim 142 160 030

Senior lecturer,
Department of Management,
School of Business and Economics,
North South University

Introduction
Labour Union is also known as Trade Union they are synonymous to each other. Labour Union
is An organization whose membership consists of workers and union leaders, united to protect
and promote their common interests. The principal purposes of a labor union are to (1) negotiate
wages and working condition terms, (2) regulate relations between workers (its members) and
the employer, (3) take collective action to enforce the terms of collective bargaining, (4) raise
new demands on behalf of its members, and (5) help settle their grievances. A trade union may
be: (a) A company union that represents interests of only one company and may not have any
connection with other unions.

Though in Bangladesh Labour Union is not a well-established matter. But, it exists quiet strongly
across the past few years. In Bangladesh Union rights were being established during 2006.
According to The Bangladesh Labor Act, 2006 workers/employers, without distinction
whatsoever shall have the right to form trade union for the purpose of regulating the relations
between workers and employers or workers and workers or employers and employers and,
subject to the constitution of the union concerned, to join trade union of their own choosing.
[Sec: 176, The Bangladesh Labor Act, 2006 / Sec: 3, IRO, 1969].
On the establishment of these rights brings a blessing to the worker of Bangladesh, as being a
low developed country the worker working in Bangladesh are being neglected on the amount of
effort they give in their work and the output they get. The amount of input the worker gives is far
away from matching with the amount of output they get at the end of the day. So, on the
establishment of these right in 2006 the Bangladesh government does makes sure for the worker
to get a fair working policy for them. Though the labour union right are being issued by the
government but there are some in house advantage for a labour as being a member of the union,
which is a blessing to them.

Debate
As being a member of a labour union the labor is getting well-paid than before because off the
fact that their wages rises. As in Bangladesh the employers are so dramatic in giving the right
amount of wages to their worker that the worker might end up without getting their wages in
time. But, being a member of the labour union might end up solving these problem as well as
with the fact of the rise of their wages. As, because a company with labour union does provides
more wages than that of the amount of wages given to the worker of a non-labour union
company. On the other hand, trade unions provide the power for employees to bargain with the
employer. Because, as Abraham Lincoln quoted that A House Divided Against itself, Cannot
Stand on Its Own, these proves that being a member of the labour give the strength of a house,
and a labour without being a member of a union will lose their strength and fall. And, these says
that union labour member can bargain with their employer with the power of unity rather than
being standing alone in the rain. On the similar side being in the union does provides motivation
to the worker as working in a team does helps build up the passion inside a person.
Labour Union even represent the worker to the employer or other area of the worker in order to
represent themselves for having a strong reference. On the other hand, labour will get protection
from any of the haphazard situation being faced by the worker. Being getting these kinds off
protection will help employees to get out the of the bad situation they might face while being a
worker. Even getting these kind of protection does gives a mental support and even satisfaction
to the workers mind, realizing that if they are fresh in their work no one can blame or blackmail
and even trap them in a bad situation. Even being in a labour union a worker gets the advantage
of reducing the wage inequalities leading towards losing of confrontation and jealously among
the workers. Even lack of inequality will increase the friendly relationship among all the labour
in a company thus increasing the amount off strength in the labour union. So, In Bangladesh
there is a lack of unity among the people and these lacking of unity does gives the chance for the
employers to take the advantage of strengthen their power against the employee and by reducing
the amount of wages given to them. So, being getting in labour union will give the strength to the
employees of Bangladesh.

Trade Union can negotiate with firm as well which means that the Bangladeshi labour do
overtime in their job so much, but does not receive their perfect amount or reasonable amount of
wages. So, if a labour is a member of the labour union than they might negotiate with the
employer on the amount of the work to be done and the amount of the overtime wages they are
going to get. The employees who are member of the union gets a satisfying amount of fringe
benefit which an employee of a non-union member does not get.
So, a country like Bangladesh where corruption is being gathered everywhere and the low-end
wage workers are not the exception to be the victim of it being done by their employer while
paying their wages. The introduction and the use of labour union is a blessing to them in a sense
that are being discussed above and it prevents the labour from being victimized from any types
of harassed being implemented on them.
Another advantage of labor unions for organizations is that they lead to less turnover. When you
have a workforce that is comprised of labor union members, they will not leave their jobs as
frequently. They have to pay dues to be a part of the union, and they typically do not want to lose
their position in the organization. When you have lower levels of turnover, it saves your business
money in the long run by not having to train as many new employees.
Businesses regularly have to undergo change if they want to stay at the forefront of their
industry. When a business has a labor union to work with, they can partner together to facilitate
change easier. When the employer knows that change is required, it can disseminate this
information to the leadership of the union and the union can then pass the information along to
the employees. When everyone is on the same page, it improves the chances of the company
getting through the change.

People are more motivated to do a higher quantity and quality of work if they feel they are being
looked after and taken care of. Labor unions promote this feeling and increases moral of the
workplace, which in turn, increases productivity.

Unions are also important advocates of human rights and democracy. They provide workplace
representation for their members, have some influence over workplace rules, and provide
protection from arbitrary discipline and dismissal. Non-union workers have theoretical access to
a number of rights and standards through individual litigation and complaints under employment
standards legislation, but these are basically means to seek redress after employment has been
terminated. In short, unions give many workers a collective voice and some workplace power
vis--vis their employers.
Good workplace relations can also be a major positive: the important work of Freeman and
Madoff (1984) emphasizes the importance to management of a collective union voice which
facilitates joint labor/management discussion of workplace problems. This openness is
enormously important: productivity is always a social process and not just a technical one. If
individual workers are treated with dignity and respect; if workplace rules are perceived as fair;
if workers can raise concerns and have them equitably resolved; if workers know that they will
share the benefits of workplace change; and if workers have a say in working conditions,
training, and health and safety issues, then workers are likely to work co-operatively with
management. The Broadbent Institute
IMF released a report stating that the decline in unionization is directly correctly to the growing
margin of income inequality.
A large majority four out of five Canadians or 80% believe the gap between the rich and
everyone else has widened over the last decade. Yet large majorities, regardless of
demographics or political preference, believe the federal government can and should do
something to reduce inequality. The Broadbent Institute
Unions offer greater opportunities for training advancement to its members guaranteeing that
they will be safer on the site, avoiding more injuries and potential safety hazards.
Unionized members are held to the highest standard when it comes to health and safety. Ensuring
that all members are protected and given the right equipment and resources to avoid possible
injuries. Unions often times have access to greater loyalty reward programs, scholarships, and
benefits for members and their families.

In Bangladesh, the garment industry is the principal export earner for that country. In the
late 1990s, it employed an estimated 350,000 workers in formal and semi-formal
employment, making it the fourth largest employing sector. Although there are no estimates
on the number of home-based garment workers, the Bangladesh Home Workers Association
(BHWA) believes there are millions of home-based garment workers, as entire rural
families are involved in traditional embroidery work. our question is why our workers need
labor union?
The answer is union workers earn more on average than non-union workers. In Bangladesh,
most of the Garment and mill owners dont follow the rules and regulations while they running
the business. Sometimes they dont want to ensure the basic rights of a worker. We often see
specially during the time of festival they dont give the wages of workers. But the question is
why? The Answer is very simple the more time they can deposit the money in the bank they can
earn more money from the interest. From this we can say that they always thinks about their
wellbeing not for the workers.
In Bangladesh, most of the Garments and mills workers are not under labor union thats why
sometimes they dont get their basic rights from their work place. We know that the wage rate in
Bangladesh is cheaper that other countries. Its a developing country day by day the number of
industries are increasing in our country and the number of workers are increasing. so, it is very
urgent to have labor union in our country.
How Do Unions Affect the Labor Environment?
The power of labor unions rests in their two main tools of influence: restricting labor supply and
increasing labor demand. Some economists compare them to cartels. Through collective
bargaining, unions negotiate the wages that employers will pay. Unions ask for a higher wage
than the equilibrium wage (found at the intersect of the labor supply and labor demand curves),
but this can lower the hours demanded by employers. Since a higher wage rate equates to less
work per dollar, unions often face problems when negotiating higher wages and instead will
often focus on increasing the demand for labor. Unions can use several different techniques to
increase the demand for labor, and thus, wages.

Unions can, and do, use the following techniques:

Push for minimum wage increases. Minimum wage increases the labor costs for
employers using low-skilled workers. This decreases the gap between the wage rate of
low-skilled and high-skilled workers; high-skilled workers are more likely to be
represented by a union.

To ensure health and safety for workers specially for women workers.

To Provide them good transport system who lives miles away from their workplace.

Increase the marginal productivity of its workers. This is often done through training.

Support restrictions on imported goods through quotas and tariffs. This increases demand
for domestic production and, therefore, domestic labor.

Children with parents in a union end up better off than children with parents outside of a
union.

The impact of unions on total nonunion wages is almost as large as the impact on total
union wages.

Strong unions set a pay standard that nonunion employers follow.

Using Panel Study of Income Dynamics, or PSID figures, the researchers were able to
track both parents' and their children's union status, educational attainment, income, and
health status. In all categories, the researchers found that children with unionized parents
end up with better earnings, higher educational attainment, and fewer health issues than
those without.

Unions have a unique legal position and in some sense, they operate like a monopoly as they are
immune to antitrust laws. Because unions control, or can exert a good deal of influence on, the
labor supply for a particular company or industry, unions can restrict non-union workers from
depressing the wage rate.

CONCLUSION
Bangladesh being a low developed country it is hard for the poor to cope up with the high-end
employer. As being poor the worker of Bangladesh needs some rights and regulation in order to
earn their own rights for the work they are doing. And, to obtain that right Labour Union is one
off the key component in a country that could help a labour or masses of labour to get their own
rights, regarding the fact that they are not being abused by the employer. Unions have
undoubtedly left their mark on the economy, and continue to be significant forces that shape the
business and political environments. They exist in a wide variety of industries, from heavy
manufacturing to the government, and assist workers in obtaining better wages and working
conditions. Unions play a pivotal role both in securing legislated labor protections and rights
such as safety and health, overtime, and family/medical leave and in enforcing those rights on
the job. Because unionized workers are more informed, they are more likely to benefit from
social insurance programs such as unemployment insurance and workers compensation. Unions
are thus an intermediary institution that provides a necessary complement to legislated benefits
and protections.
So, we think in developing countries like Bangladesh where political environment is not stable
having labor union is blessings.

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