Types of Business and Labor Unions

Sole Proprietor

A type of business owned and operated by a single individual.

Partnership

A type of business owned and operated by two or more individuals who share the profits and liabilities.

Corporation

A type of business that is a separate legal entity from its owners, with shareholders and a board of directors.

Articles of Partnership

An agreement signed by partners that outlines their responsibilities and rights within a partnership.

Charter

A legal document that grants permission to start a corporation.

Stockholders

Individuals who own shares or stocks in a corporation.

Double Taxation

The taxation of corporate profits and the subsequent taxation of dividends received by stockholders.

Franchise

A business model where individuals buy the rights to use the name and structure of an established business.

Cooperative

A group of individual businesses that work together for mutual benefit.

Consumer Product Safety Commission

A government agency responsible for ensuring the safety of products sold to consumers.

Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)

A government agency responsible for ensuring safe and healthy working conditions.

Social Responsibility

The obligation of a business to pursue goals that benefit society as well as itself.

Labor Unions

Organizations formed by groups of workers to advocate for better pay, working conditions, and benefits.

Taft-Hartley Act

A law passed in 1947 that banned the practice of closed shops.

Trade Unions

Unions that represent workers in a specific trade or industry.

Industrial Unions

Unions that represent workers across different trades or industries.

Closed Shop

A workplace where workers must belong to a union in order to be hired.

Union Shop

A workplace where workers are required to join a union shortly after being hired.

Right-to-Work Laws

Laws that prevent mandatory union membership in union shops.

National Labor Relations Board

A government agency that oversees union elections and enforces labor laws.

Collective Bargaining

The process of negotiation between union workers and employers to determine the terms of employment.

Negotiation

A path to compromise where union and company representatives discuss and reach an agreement.

Mediation

A path to compromise where a neutral third party helps facilitate negotiations between union and company representatives.

Arbitration

A path to compromise where a neutral third party makes a binding decision to resolve disputes between union and company representatives.

Strikes

A form of protest where workers refuse to work until their demands are met.

Picketing

A form of protest where workers gather outside a workplace to inform the public about their grievances.

Boycott

A form of protest where individuals refuse to buy or use a company's products or services.

Scab

A term used to describe a person who continues to work during a strike, often hired as a replacement for striking workers.

Lockout

A strategy used by businesses to prevent employees from entering the workplace until they agree to contract terms.

Injunction

A legal order from the court that prohibits certain activities, such as strikes or picketing.

Government Intervention

The involvement of the government in severe labor-management disputes, which may include seizing business operations until the conflict is resolved.