Why join the IWW?
from iww.org
It does not take long to figure out that workers and their employers do not have the same interests. Workers want shorter hours, higher pay and better benefits. We want our work to be less boring, less dangerous and less destructive to the environment. We want more control over how we produce goods and provide services. We want meaningful work that contributes to our communities and world.
Our employers, in contrast, want us to work longer, harder, faster and cheaper. They want fewer safety and environmental regulations, and they demand absolute control over all decisions, work schedules, speech and actions in the workplace.
Practical Benefits of a Union
The easiest way to stand up for each other in our workplaces and communities and the easiest way to improve our working conditions is to join a union. That is why employers fight so hard and spend so much money to keep unions out of their workplaces. Workers with unions generally have higher pay and job security, better benefits and fewer scheduling problems. More pay equals fewer hours at work and more hours for enjoying the good things in life. Union workplaces are safer and have less harassment, discrimination and favoritism. This is because a union gives workers the power to make workplace decisions. The less we let our employers make all of the decisions, the better our lives and communities will be. Unions also provide mutual aid and community. This means assistance with problems at work, but it could also mean help with a community project or fighting a landlord.
Why Every Worker Should be in the One Big Union
Whether your job sucks or is "pretty good" (at least today), we in the IWW believe you should join us for the following reasons. We need to start sticking up for our coworkers in our workplaces and in our industries. Ask around on your next shift: How many coworkers have two or three jobs? How many are one paycheck away from an eviction? We have a duty to our co-workers and those who will follow in our footsteps to make things better. The only way to do this is to organize together. When we band together around our common experiences and interests, we can improve our jobs and industries. Our labor, not our bosses, is what makes our workplaces tick, and we can use our labor power to improve our jobs and our communities in the short term. In a lot of ways, that is what unions are all about.
With the IWW, you also belong to a union that has a long term vision and plan for workers' control of their own work, without bosses, making our industries and economy democratic.
As an IWW member, you get:
- Volunteer organizers if you choose to organize your workplace and industry;
- Union organizing expertise in areas of strategy, media, community support, infrastructure building and bargaining;
- Commitment to democratic unionism, which means members control their own organizing campaigns and the direction of the union;
- An international organization dedicated to working together to build worker power on our jobs and in our communities;
- Mutual aid and support;
- Some practical things: the IWW internal newsletter, access to the IWW website, the union's constitution, your local branch newsletter (if applicable) and a member button.