Labor Laws and Unions

Labor Laws and Unions

HRM/531 - Week XX

XX Month 20XX

Labor Laws and Unions

If one has not been living under a rock these past few years, he should be aware of General Motors (GM), once the greatest automobile manufacturer in the United States, fall from grace. It was not always so bad. According to GM’s website, GM was founded by William “Billy” Durant on September 16, 1908. Durant became a leading manufacturer of horse-drawn vehicles in Flint, Michigan, before making his foray into the automobile industry. At its inception, GM held only the Buick Motor Company, but in a matter of years would acquire more than 20 companies, including Oldsmobile, Cadillac, and Oakland, today known as Pontiac (General Motors, 2012). Two weeks shy of 101 years from the day it was founded, GM filed for bankruptcy and subsequently was bailed out by the Obama administration.

The union that represents General Motor autoworkers is the United Auto Workers (UAW). The UAW does not represent automobile manufacturers themselves, but employees who work for them. The longer version of its name is, “The International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America.” According to UAW’s website, they are one of the largest and most diverse unions in North America with members in virtually every sector of the economy.

Since its founding in 1935, the UAW has consistently developed innovative partnerships with employers and negotiated industry-leading wages and benefits for its members. UAW members have benefited from a number of collective bargaining breakthroughs, including:

* The first employer-paid health insurance plan for industrial workers

* The first...