Can you imagine what conditions would be like for Canadian workers if workers had no benefits such as medical and dental, no say in hours or days off? That is just a few examples of what our working world without unions, or organized labour, would look like. Unions seek to give Canadian workers a voice for equality between all parts of a company where there may not have always been a chance for workers to speak up and are an essential part of working class structure in society. Though not every working Canadian today, or in the past has been part of a union they have helped shape the standards of today 's employment expectations. First, it is important to understand where unions originated and how unions have progressed to where they are today. …show more content…
For workers who are in a union, their union will assures that they are being treated properly and fairly by their employers, are getting paid fairly and are working in safe conditions. Unions also advocate on behalf of employees for things like wages and benefits. The vital roles of unions have not changed much since unions started to form, and are mostly reflective of the employees major concerns. For example, one thing that unions supported in the past was an increase in wage and better hours for employees whereas today, unions support equality in pay between women and men. Though some union roles change with the times and worker needs, there are some things that are always required such as; proper education, corresponding with other unions internationally and speaking to the government regarding major labour issues. Unions also benefit non unionized workers through economic and social ways. Unionized workers will spend money from their pay in local stores, adding to the profit of non unionized workers. Additionally when workers use benefits such as dental, this in turn profits the offices that they visit and helps their businesses. Unions also help to set the standard of employment for other businesses. For example, when unions started to offer maternity or paternity leave people in non unionized jobs wanted the same thing because it has become accepted by society as being a