Opinion: Unions are a specific response to the United States’ consumer culture 

“The customer is always right.”

This is an adage that is largely prevalent in Western culture. The idea seems to stem from the fact that customers are the ones who pay for products or services and therefore control how those requested services are provided. 

Another idea within American workplaces is the notion that if an individual works hard enough or gets more educated, they will have good things happen to them, such as a promotion or a better-paying job. Therefore, those who have the most money work harder if we take this theory at face value. 

The twin ideals of the customer’s opinion being fact and the association of success as the opposite of laziness creates a multitude of side-effects in workplace culture in the United States. Specifically, there seems to be a higher level of tolerance for entitled customers and disregard for careers labeled as low skill. 

In terms of employer-employee dynamics, the problems of America’s consumer culture are still prevalent. Employers can demand employees work long hours or under harsh conditions because employers have control over their employees’ income. Additionally, stigma against manual labor or customer service workers might mean lower pay for those workers. 

This is not to say every employer hates their employees. Rather, the currently held beliefs about employment and commerce allow for employers to treat their workers carelessly without reprimand. The main response that employees can take against potentially hostile workplaces is to leave or unionize. 

Unions in the United States seem to mostly be a reactionary measure. As per the National Labor Relations Board, unions can be formed when 30% of workers in a company petition for a union to be formed, the NLRB will conduct an election to determine if the majority of workers wish for a union. Unions are a result of employees responding to problems with the work culture. 

According to Harvard labor economist Lawrence Katz, union participation decreased during the pandemic, but now union cases like the one seen earlier this year at Amazon bring the merits of unions back into the limelight. Following the example of the Staten Island Amazon warehouse workers, the demand for unions has increased significantly this year. 

The point of a union is to even the playing field for employees, not to punish employers. Employees have a right to choose the terms of their employment. When communication breaks down between management and workers, unions advocate for the workers with no inherent ability to bargain with employers. 

The best solution for workers’ rights would be complete understanding between employers and employees, but given the condition placed upon workers at massive corporations, this is not the status quo. Until Americans fundamentally change the way they view business and employment, these problems will persist, and unions will be necessary. 

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Bryant Saunders is a computer science major and member of Utah States Speech and Debate. He has an enthusiasm for discussing philosophy and politics.
— A02307089@usu.edu