Statistics Canada reports that unionized workers in Canada are paid $5.40 an hour – or 23% more – than non-unionized workers. For women, people of colour and other equity seeking groups, the pay advantage of belonging to a union is even higher. Only 28.4% of unionized workers report they have individual annual incomes under $40,000, compared to 44.1% of non-unionized workers. Long story short: it pays to be in a union.

Research also reveals that unionized workplaces tend to be safer and healthier, with studies in the construction industry, for example, illustrating there are 30% lower critical injury claims, 17% fewer mobility impairments and 23% lower lost-time claims in unionized environments. This is mainly because unionized workers like CUSW members are more likely to report health and safety violations (either for themselves or their fellow members), and collective agreements spell out specific union demands for safer workplaces.

78% of union members have access to a workplace pension, but less than 42% of non-unionized workers do. These percentages are almost exactly the same for workplace benefits as well (77% compared to 47%, respectively). CUSW believes everyone should enjoy safe and secure retirement and live their golden years not having to worry about finances.

Unionized workers are more likely to be working full-time, permanent and enjoy longer work tenures with employers. This means a lot when it comes to seniority and a lifetime of increasing pay and benefits. Non-unionized workers have far more precarious, temporary, part-time and insecure jobs. Unions like CUSW in British Columbia provide a powerful defence against those bad bosses who want to consistently nickel and dime wage earners.

Unionized workplaces are more equal, not only between employers and employees (that goes without saying), but between lower and higher paid workers themselves. The wage gap is lower in unionized workplaces, with relatively higher wages for lower paid workers, and better wages especially among women and young workers. Unions play a vital role in reducing both financial and social inequality in British Columbia and throughout Canada. This makes good economic sense, because for unions like CUSW, no one should be left behind.

Related to job security are more predictable schedules, standard hours of work, shift premiums and overtime pay, all stipulated within collective agreements. And according to research from McMaster University and the United Way, unionized workers are less likely to report struggling with paying bills and suffering stress from potential changes in income, leading to overall better mental health outcomes than non-unionized workers.

Unions place a premium on life-long learning and skills upgrading. Not only do unionized workplaces provide more of this training (as required through collective agreements), but many unions like CUSW provide free or heavily subsidized training themselves. In the economy of British Columbia during the early 21st century, workers need to be prepared for ever changing jobs and new forms of work.

Unions aren’t just single-minded organizations. Many are active in engaging elected officials and policy makers to ensure the rights workers have won through decades of struggle remain intact, and that workers everywhere – in British Columbia, throughout Canada and around the world, and whether in a union or not – are free from oppression and exploitation.

Unions help create workplaces where grievance and arbitration procedures are clearly defined through collective agreements instead of timely disputes. As well, unions like CUSW in British Columbia provide democratic institutions and spaces where workers can affect change from the bottom up. That’s because we believe wage earners should control their places of work, not the other way around. Unions aren’t just about dollars and cents, but resting control over the labour process itself. This democratic ideal was first formulated in the labour movement by the miners’ union in the late 19th century, who believed those who work in the mines should control them.