White collar union workers have higher compensation, better benefits and more time off[1]. They also report higher rates of life satisfaction[2]. Unions offer

White collar union workers have higher compensation, better benefits and more time off[1]. They also report higher rates of life satisfaction[2]. Unions offer engineers more opportunities for democratic decision making at work, a place most workers spend 8 hours a day or more at. They also offer strong bargaining positions that can help developers own more of the value they create. I'm sure there are things about the industry and employers that developers could improve. For example, there are quite a few engineers out there that have on call duty expected of them, sometimes unpaid or inadequately compensated. On call duty, often in places with higher rates of unionization or good labor laws, is compensated by 1.5x to 2x+ rate multipliers, includes additional bonuses, and on call duty isn't an expectation, it is voluntary [1] https://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2013/04/art2full.pdf https://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2013/04/art2full.pdf [2] https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0160449X16643321 https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0160449X16643321