Union Membership Does Not Seem to Be Attractive to Young People and as a Result Unions Are Trying to Develop Strategies to Stay Relevant. Critically Discuss the Reasons for the Decline in Union Membership. Offer Some

Q1. Union membership does not seem to be attractive to young people and as a result unions are trying to develop strategies to stay relevant.

Critically discuss the reasons for the decline in union membership. Offer some suggestions as to how unions might increase their appeal to young people in the workforce.

Introduction

The intent of this essay is to understand why union membership in Singapore is declining and to provide suggestions on how to increase its appeal to the generation Y, the young working adults. Before going into details, it would be useful to provide a brief introduction of unions, and the evolution of its functions from its past to its current operations. The essay would also touch on current strategies and advantages the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) have implemented to improve union membership especially for the young people.

About Unions

Singapore unions have gone a long way since it was first established in 1940. Currently, NTUC has become the umbrella for 62 affiliated unions and forms the tripartite relationship between the government and the employer union, Singapore National Employers Federation (SENEF).

In the early years, as workers were unfairly treated and paid minimal wages, the main role of the union was to help negotiate for better salary and to improve work safety and health through collective bargaining. Job security was also improved. As Singapore continued to developed, the government introduced legislations to ensure standard working conditions and enabled employers more rights, with the view of Singapore attracting more foreign investment.

The legislations, Employment Act and Industrial Relations Act provided the basic needs of the employees regarding contracts, employment and benefits, therefore causing membership rates to decrease drastically. The Trade disputes Act further decreased the importance of unions as it deemed strikes as illegal. With all these legislations enacted, employees would feel...