Enhancing the Electoral Power of Union Members
Union Uncovers Hidden Work Culture Concerns Through Digital Survey
The Young Workers' Lab, a program aiming to improve union democracy, has discovered a surprising issue raised by a large number of members across multiple regions: excessive unregulated working hours.
Since the publication of initial results in spring 2019, the Lab has utilized ThoughtExchange, an anonymized survey tool, in collaboration with sectors and affiliates from the UK, South America, Australia, and Europe. The platform enables members and non-members to voice their opinions without geographical or time restrictions, particularly benefiting young workers and those uncomfortable speaking in public forums.
By sending out one question—"What small things can we do together that will improve the working lives of everyone who works in [the sector]?"—and facilitating anonymous input and scoring, the survey gathers an equal number of responses from each participant, ensuring a fair and democratic process, even for large groups of tens of thousands.
The survey held in this sector yielded 1029 participants among 2000 members and additional Facebook groups. Out of these participants, 370 unique answers were provided for the question above. Members demonstrated enthusiasm in shaping their working environment as they ranked these answers a total of 7843 times, resulting in the list of the most popular to least popular answers as shown in the visualizations below, depicting the members' interaction throughout the two-week survey.
The top two answers exposed unregulated working hours as a priority for the sector's members. Unsurprisingly, some issues were more contentious than others. The backend of the tool revealed a divide in opinions regarding paid overtime; a minority (3 members) considered it of minimal importance (1.3 stars out of 5), while a larger group (22 members) rated it as nearly as urgent as the top priority (4.9 stars out of 5).
One valuable insight derived from this survey was the divergence in priorities between the more and less vocal members. In the past, the union had received lists of priority issues only from its active members. The survey organizer noted, "When we did the ThoughtExchange, there was a really clear winner 'issue' in terms of giving us a list of the things that we should be tackling. Tellingly, it was an issue that wasn't even on the list of priorities that our core group of active members gave us." This finding highlights both the disadvantages of relying solely on active members' opinions and the benefits of employing new methods to reach a more diverse range of perspectives, which in turn, could foster better union democracy and keep the union attuned to the needs of unheard voices.
The organizer also pointed out the importance of the union's existing network in encouraging participation, stating, "I don't think we would've got that without having a degree of convening power already (already-active Facebook groups etc). If we'd promoted it just by sending out an email, my guess is that we have had a fraction of the response."
While ThoughtExchange is a paid tool, alternative digital survey tools that maintain anonymity and democratic voting include Jotform, Eligo Voting, and Microsoft Forms. When selecting a survey tool for union purposes, consider features like the ability to ensure anonymity, secure and private voting, compliance with legal standards, support for democratic voting processes, and ease of use for participants.
- Amid concerns about excessive working hours, the importance of addressing health issues and promoting a healthy lifestyle within the workplace was also highlighted, as evidenced by responses suggesting the need for wellness programs and breaks, as well as creating a work environment that encourages mindfulness and self-care.
- Furthermore, in the realm of lifestyle and personal development, there was a call for culture-based initiatives that foster community connection, such as home-and-garden workshops, book clubs, and language courses, to enhance the overall wellbeing and camaraderie among union members.
