American professionals are right to be anxious about the security of their jobs amid a dim economic outlook as economists are reporting a high likelihood of a recession within the next year. Layoff anxiety is real and fueled by more and more companies announcing staff cuts. This month, Glassdoor, Indeed, and Intel joined the growing list of companies laying off staff this year. Corporate leadership is further adding to professionals’ worries by citing a greater investment in artificial intelligence (AI) as the basis for layoffs.
Professionals face a critical choice: to be passive recipients of change or to actively shape our future. We are not powerless and should not be left to shoulder the burden resulting from a changing, unstable economy. By joining together in union with our coworkers we can assert some measure of control and predictability over our work lives.
America’s professional workforce is critical to our country’s creativity, innovation, productivity, and profitability. The essential nature of our work as engineers, lawyers, registered nurses, writers, scientists, and so many others makes us a force to be reckoned with, which is why we are seeing an increasing number of professionals forming unions. Professionals do not accept a work-life that makes us precarious and vulnerable in turbulent economic times. We deserve better.
Union contracts provide a degree of financial security in uncertain times by solidifying pay, benefits, and working conditions in a legally enforceable union contract. Newly organized union professionals have secured minimum salaries, guaranteed annual wage increases, and the opportunity to receive additional merit raises in their contracts.
Health and retirement benefits, a cornerstone of a strong union contract, are crucial to long-term financial security, addressing the needs of growing families, and weathering life’s unanticipated events. Newly organized professionals are lowering their health insurance costs and achieving greater retirement security. Critically, these benefits cannot legally be changed unless agreed to by the workers and the employer.
Union contracts are also giving professionals a seat at the table to negotiate on the implementation and use of AI in the workplace. Professionals embrace technology as a helpful tool and they are in the best position to advise how best to incorporate AI and other technologies into their work, including ethical guardrails and compensation when new technologies alter their job responsibilities.
Job security provisions in union contracts can offer proactive solutions when technology changes lead to displacement. Union professionals have secured provisions that prohibit employers from cutting staff due to AI use in the workplace. Additionally, a union contract can provide for the opportunity to be rehired if a position that they are qualified for comes open after they are laid off.
Joining a union does not shield employees when a turbulent economy leads employers to make cuts, reorganize the company, or carry out other changes. However, a union contract can soften the landing of layoffs with provisions for advanced notice and severance pay, and set rules to protect employees in the event of a merger or acquisition.
Professionals understand that their jobs are influenced by economic shifts and technological change. Yet, even amid this uncertainty, a growing number are actively seeking greater control over their professional lives. Union membership offers a proven path not only to enhance economic standing but also to build a crucial sense of security and predictability. By solidifying pay, benefits, and working conditions, unions empower professionals. For those looking to get ahead of the curve and assert their voice in the face of uncertainty, exploring the benefits of unionization and reaching out to an organizer today is a powerful step toward a more secure future.
Jennifer Dorning is president of the Department for Professional Employees, AFL-CIO.
The views expressed in this article are the writer’s own.
The post In Turbulent Economic Times, Professionals Benefit From Forming Unions appeared first on Newsweek.
