What is the main goal of labor unions?

• A. Labor unions organize workers to bargain with employers for better wages, benefits, and working conditions; they use collective bargaining.
• B. Labor unions set prices.
• C. Labor unions replace employers.
• D. Labor unions reduce employment opportunities.

Answer: (A)

Labor unions organize workers to bargain with employers for higher wages, better benefits, and safer or improved working conditions. The main tool they use is collective bargaining, where union representatives negotiate a contract with management that covers pay scales, hours, job protections, health insurance, retirement benefits, and procedures for resolving disputes. This process helps balance power between workers and employers and creates a clear, agreed-upon framework for how workers are treated on the job. Sometimes negotiations lead to actions like strikes, which are used to press for terms, but the core aim is to secure fair pay, good benefits, and safe, stable working conditions for union members.

Setting prices, replacing employers, or reducing employment opportunities aren’t goals of labor unions, because they focus on improving terms of employment and protecting workers’ rights within existing job structures.