Trade union

A union (labor union in American English; trade union in British English and Australian English; either labour union or trade union in Canadian English) is an organisation formed by workers. Most typically, a single union will represent workers in a particular industry (industrial unionism) or craft (craft unionism), within all or part of a country. Unions are often divided into "locals" and united in national federations. Typical examples, depending on the country, could be all the assembly workers for one employer, all the teachers in a local school district, or all the workers in a particular industry.

Unions in other countries

Some countries such as Sweden, Finland, and the other Nordic countries have strong, centralized unions, where every type of work has a specific union, which are then gathered in large national union confederations. The largest Swedish union confederation is Landsorganisationen, or LO. LO has almost two million members, which is more than a fifth of Sweden's population. Finland's equivalent is SAK, the Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions, with about one million members out of the country's 5.2 million inhabitants.

Related Topics:
Sweden - Finland - Nordic countries - Confederation - ''Landsorganisationen'' - SAK

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In comparison, France is thought to have one of the lowest union densities in Europe, with only about 10% of the workers inside unions. Union membership, however, tends to be concentrated in some specific areas, especially the public sector. Unions in some sectors, such as public transportation (SNCF and RATP...) are likely to enter well-publicized strikes.

Related Topics:
France - SNCF - RATP

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The Australian labour movement has a long history of craft, trade and industrial unionism. While unions have sometimes been very strong, as of 2005 they are relatively weak and in decline, due in part to the actions of Prime Minister John Howard and his Liberal government.

Related Topics:
Australian labour movement - Craft - Industrial union - As of 2005 - John Howard - Liberal

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