Associate Membership: Unionism or Consumerism?

Analyzing data from the Union Image Survey (a 1984 Harris poll examining workers' attitudes toward various forms of employee organization), the authors compare the motives and characteristics of workers who expressed a desire to join an associate membership program with those of workers who indicated a readiness to vote for traditional union representation. The results confirm the hypothesis that workers' interest in the types of consumer benefits offered by associate membership programs was strongly related to their interest in joining such programs but not to their readiness to vote for a union. On the other hand, general attitudes toward unions significantly affected both choices.