You overhear this discussion at the Underground Bar late one Saturday night:
Speaker One:
To help workers gain higher wages and better benefits, we need to level the playing field between unions and employers. Since the early 1980s, unions have been steadily losing ground, not just because of changes in the economy but also because today’s labour laws have provided workers with very little protection. Each year… workers are fired or lose wages simply for trying to organize and join unions. That needs to change. We should have tougher penalties to prevent employers from firing or discriminating against workers involved in organizing efforts, and unions should be recognized without a vote if a majority of employees sign union membership cards.
Speaker Two:
Hogwash. Unions are part of the problem with our economy. The government should be helping to weaken unions, not strengthen them.
Your assignment is to write a short, well-structured essay that analyzes and evaluates the above exchange. Note that there is no “right” answer to this debate: the two quotes present two sides of an argument. There are many ways to interpret this debate and you have wide latitude to decide how you wish to respond. Your job is to express an opinion and to then back it up with research from the course materials, plus any other additional research you believe is useful. Do you agree with one speaker or another, are they both wrong, or are they both partially correct, in your opinion?
Your essay is not to exceed 5 double-spaced pages (times new roman font, 12 pin). Papers going over that length will be deducted marks. There is a useful skill in making succinct arguments, and that is part of this assignment, so stay within the page allotment.