The link between unionisation and the OHS of your work environment
A recent study by Harvard University has found a link between decreasing unionisation rates and workplace fatalities and demonstrates that the “protective effect of unions on workplace safety at the micro level translates into large scale reductions in occupational fatalities”.
The study by Michael Zoorob used statistical models to analyse the effect of decreasing unionisation rates on occupational mortality. All four models showed unionisation was associated with lower fatality rates and three of the four showed that every percentage point decrease in unionisation was associated with a 2.7 to 2.8 percent increase in fatality rate.
Zoorob states that “some scholars have argued that unions form an important part of the ‘social machinery’ that ensures public health, so the recent decline may be concerning” and the data strongly supports a need for concern.
Zoorob found the “studies suggest that unionised workplaces receive more health and safety inspections from the federal agency OSHA, and the threat of union organising may impel employers to improve workplace safety.”
While more needs to be done to identify why unionisation reduces fatalities it is important to recognise the role that unions play in ensuring workplace OHS standards are upheld. It is hoped that this new research will encourage policy makers to take Zoorob’s advice and “consider the potential effects of declining unionisation and anti-union legislation on occupational health”.
Reference: Zoorob M Does ‘right to work’ imperil the right to health? The effect of labour unions on workplace fatalities Occup Environ Med Published Online First: 13 June 2018. doi: 10.1136/oemed-2017-104747
