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Unions are more popular than they’ve been in two decades. They’re dominating the news right now, with workers from massive companies like Starbucks and Amazon fighting for union protections.
Unions help workers earn fair wages, get benefits such as healthcare and paid leave, and fight their employers in the event of wrongful termination. Not all freelancers are eligible for union membership, but those that are find that they offer benefits freelancers can’t get from their companies, since they’re not full-time employees.
“I have been incredibly satisfied with both unions I’m in; it’s made it easier to get higher-paying work and better compensation when it comes to benefits like healthcare and retirement,” says freelancer Jonathan Stoller-Schoff, a member of The Art Director's Guild, IATSE Local 800, and United Scenic Artists, IATSE Local 829.
And they’re probably—71% of Americans approve of labor unions. For those hoping to join a union, here’s what you need to know.
Worker Misclassification
The problem of unionizing freelancers is tricky because there are many different types of freelancers. Some freelancers shouldn’t actually be classified as freelancers, as they work 40 hours per week for the same organization. This problem, known as misclassification, is a massive issue because these misclassified workers should get benefits from their companies. Uber drivers, for instance, are not considered full-time Uber employees, and as such, do not have access to their healthcare.
Efforts to stop misclassification are underway in California, New Jersey, and New York, including offering a third category of employees known as “dependent contractors.” Bernie Sanders has tried to introduce the Workplace Democracy Act to right some of the wrongs of the National Labor Relations Act, which allows companies not to offer benefits to independent contractors. The act—last introduced in 2018—would ensure that anyone who works for anyone else has some protections. Unfortunately, anywhere from 10-30% of workers are still misclassified as independent contractors.
But unions can help with the problem of misclassification. “In manufacturing and logistics, we already see lots of workers who are employed by staffing agencies rather than directly by the companies they work for,” said David Hill, Vice President of the National Writers Union. “It's just a matter of time before they figure out how to take it another step and make every worker an independent contractor. If laws stand in their way they can change the laws. We need to have the power to do the same, and that's why I'm a member of the NWU and why I support unions. Unions are workers only hope of having any say in how the laws that will impact our lives are written.”
Unionizing Freelancers
The problem of misclassification is important, but it’s not relevant to freelancers like myself who want to work for many different organizations. I’m not misclassified—I really am an independent contractor. And I want worker protections without losing the ability to work many different gigs. Can unions help me?
Short answer: somewhat. There are unions that protect freelancers. The National Writers Union, for example, offers union protections for many types of writers, as does the Writers Guild of America. But not all freelancers are eligible for these unions. And some, such as myself, freelance in many different areas. I’m a writer, but I’m also a social media consultant, a comedian, a part-time social worker, and an SAT tutor. I contain multitudes, as evidenced by the 521 hours it takes me to file my taxes.
Experts agree that freelancers encounter challenges around unionization. “The challenges for freelancer unions are that traditionally unions are groups of employees, not contractors,” says Austin Kaplan, attorney at Kaplan Law Firm. “Freelancers are almost always contractors. Also, freelancers are usually not centrally located and may not be connected to one another in a personal way like many employees who work in the same facility or office. In this sense, the very flexibility that attracts workers to the gig economy presents a challenge for unionization.”
The Freelancer’s Union
The good news is that for people like me, there is a Freelancer’s Union. With over 500,000 members, it offers benefits likes discounted health, dental, and vision plans. The bad news is that the Freelancer’s Union is not technically a union. They do not negotiate contracts with employers or represent freelancers with grievances, and as such, there are a number of legal benefits freelancers who join it are missing out on.
Legal Protections For Freelancers
All hope is not lost, though. It’s possible you won’t be able to join a union, but the more relevant question is: what kinds of workplace protections do freelancers have against unfair treatment at work? One massive issue freelancers face is being paid late or not at all—for example, 29% of all freelance invoices are paid late. A number of steps have been taken—such as the 2017 Freelance Isn’t Free Act—to provide damages for freelancers who were paid late or not at all, and to help freelancers who suffered retaliation or harassment. Freelancers are also protected against “unfair working conditions” under the 2006 Independent Contracts Act. However, what constitutes an “unfair working condition” is up for debate (most things in quotes are), and a freelancer must engage with a lawyer to figure it out if their rights have been violated, as there is no union to do it for them.
But many are optimistic about the future of unionizing freelancers. “Workers have done an incredible job of using tech tools to organize geographically disperse workforces,” says Kaplan. “We saw this again during the Twitter layoffs, when thousands of Twitter workers who did not work in the same place banded together online to discuss their situation and the company’s severance offer as a group. There is reason to believe that unionization of freelancer workers will be increasingly common as technology makes coordination among freelance workers easier.”
Fortunately, as the issues of workplace equity rise in national prominence and technology develops, I’m hopeful that the self-employed will have a voice in the conversation.
