1. The American Labor Force
Chapter 12
The American Labor Force

2. Civilian Labor Force
Total number of people 16 years old or older who are either employed or actively seeking work
Excludes disabled people, prisons, mental institutions, armed forces, homemakers, or just not seeking work

3. Types of workers Blue-Collar Workers - Video White-Collar Workers
Craft, manufacturing, nonfarm laborers
White-Collar Workers
Office workers, businessmen, salespeople, highly trained
Service Workers
Cooks, health-care aides, repair people, mechanic, barbers, McDonalds

4. Categorized by skill level
Unskilled Workers
Little training, little education, disposable.
Waiters, custodial work, assembly-line
Semiskilled Workers
Require some training, often technology
Nurses aide, secretaries
Skilled Workers
Learned trade or craft
Police officer, electricians, plumber
Professionals
College degrees +
Teachers, architects, accountants, white-collar workers

5. Supply and demand Factors that affect wages: Minimum Wage Law Skill
Type of Job
Location
Minimum Wage Law
Advantages or Disadvantages?
My book pg Video

6. Labor unions
Association of workers organized to improve wages and working conditions for its members - Video

7. Labor Unions
Strikes – deliberate work stoppage by workers to force an employer to give in to their demands

8. Types of Unions
Craft Union – union made up of skilled workers in a specific trade or industry
Industrial Union – union made up of all the workers in an industry regardless of job or skill level

9. Local Union
Members of a union in a particular factory, company, or geographic area
MSTA – Missouri School Teachers Association

10. Shops Closed Shop – company in which ONLY union members can be hired
Union Shop – company that requires new employees to join a union after a specific period of time (usually 6 months)
Agency Shop – Company in which employees are not required to join the union, but must pay union dues

11. Right-to-work laws
State laws forbidding unions from forcing workers to join and pay union dues
Lets look up some Missouri Right-to-Work Laws

12. How do unions work?
Members pay to be a part of union, union works to get fair pay, benefits, hours, retirement, conditions, they do this by…
Collective bargaining – process by which unions and employers negotiate the conditions of employment
Mediation – a neutral person to help reach an agreement
Arbitration – union and management submit the issues they cannot agree on to a third party for a final decision

13. COLA
Cost of Living Adjustment – provision calling for a wage increase each year if the general level of prices rise

14. If union member do not get what they want…
Strike
Picketing – action of strikers who walk in front of a workplace carrying signs that state their disagreement with the company

15. If union member do not get what they want…
Boycott – economic pressure exerted by unions urging the public not to purchase the goods or services produced by a company

16. If management does not want to give in…
Lockout – situation that occurs when management prevents workers from returning to work until they agree to a new contract
Injunction – court order preventing some activity

17. Cesar Chavez