-fought battles occurred after the industrial revolution in the late 1800s. Today, few Americans realize that the eight-hour, five-day workweek is a result of the efforts of unions, and one which has benefitted both union and non union workers. An early success of the labor movement was the elimination of child labor, another development in the success of labor unions which is largely lost on today's workers who are too young to remember when children as young as eight and nine worked long hours for little pay in often dangerous factory jobs. Unions also pushed workers'-compensation laws through Congress and state legislatures. Despite abuses of these laws, they did wipe out two archaic doctrines: assumption of risk by workers when hired and contributory negligence by injured workers (Gittler, 1994, p. 11).
During the Great Depression, unemployment insurance came into being as a result of strong pressure from unions. During a 1950s recession, the closing of a glove factory threatened to wipe out the one-industry town of Gloversville, New York, but unemployment insurance kept the town alive until employment was restored. During the early-1990s recession, unemployment insurance (regarded by most managements as another step toward socialism when it was first proposed) was a boon to thousands of managers who fell victim to downsizings (Gittler, 1994, p. 11).
Many, if not most, police agencies are prohibited from using the strike because of the negative effect that such job actions would have on public safety. Where work stoppages in the private sector slow down production, or eliminate the ability of the company to conduct its everyday business, work stoppages in police agencies remove valuable public safety workers and put the citizenry in some danger (Gely & Chandler, 1995, p. 172).
Despite the fact that police unions are unable to use the union's most powerful weapon, unions have taken hold in police agencies across the co...