labor union

noun

: an organization of workers formed for the purpose of advancing its members' interests in respect to wages, benefits, and working conditions

members of a labor union with job protection under a collective bargaining agreement with the employer

—Seth Sandronsky

Examples of labor union in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

There’s also the lingering fact that labor remains cheaper in many, many other countries compared to the US, where manufacturers have had to manage demands from labor unions in recent years. —Bryan Mena, CNN, 26 Sep. 2024

The shift comes as the Republican Party has shifted messaging and some policies among its newer class of politicians toward labor unions, especially as Trump fights to win in the Rust Belt – aiming to replicate higher than usual labor union support compared to other GOP candidates. —Jack Birle, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 25 Sep. 2024

Targeting immigrants for their real or imaginary diet also has its own long history related to racial discrimination in the U.S. Dietary differences were even once used by a labor union to justify the 19th century Chinese Exclusion Act. —Jude Joffe-Block, NPR, 20 Sep. 2024

Fears of a strike by the labor union pushed peak season earlier by a month this year as shippers wanted to ensure their holiday products would be in before a work stoppage. —Lori Ann Larocco, CNBC, 19 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1849, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

labor union

noun

: an organization of workers formed to protect the rights and advance the interests of its members concerning wages, benefits, and working conditions

Legal Definition

labor union

noun

: a labor organization usually consisting of workers of the same trade that is formed for the purpose of advancing its members' interests (as through collective bargaining) in respect to wages, benefits, and working conditions see also craft union, bargaining unit

Note: Labor unions and employers are subject to the provisions of the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA or Wagner Act), as amended by the Labor Management Relations (Taft-Hartley) Act and the Labor Management Reporting and Disclosure (Landrum-Griffin) Act. The NLRA authorized the establishment of the National Labor Relations Board, the federal agency which administers the provisions of the Act.