Written by the Fiveable Content Team • Last updated August 2025
Written by the Fiveable Content Team • Last updated August 2025
Definition
A labor union is an organized group of workers who unite to make decisions about the conditions of their work. They seek to improve wages, hours, benefits, and working conditions through collective bargaining with employers.
AP course connection
Topic 8.10: 8.10 Trends in Human Resource Management and Labor Relations
The process by which labor union representatives negotiate with employers on behalf of the union members to establish wages, hours, benefits, and working conditions.
A work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work, often used as a bargaining tool by labor unions to press for better terms from employers.
A systematic, step-by-step process designed by unions and employers that workers can use to voice and resolve disputes over violations of contract terms or working conditions