If trade unions were not something you were previously aware of, you probably are now. Whether it’s the ‘Mick Lynch effect’ or disruptions to your commute, post or healthcare, unions are increasingly at the forefront of the UK’s current socioeconomic crisis. And whilst our country’s unions are working hard to support their members, they themselves are also facing multiple challenges.
Union membership in the UK has experienced years of decline since its peak in the 1980s. Although, we saw a small uplift in 2020, likely in response to COVID-19, the trend has shown an overall gradual decline.
Unions are also becoming older, with 74% of membership held by those over the age of 35, and 39% over the age of 50. The combination a declining and ageing membership base is creating concern about the future of unions.
When union membership was at its height in the late-70’s, British people were faced with high inflation and economic instability. And, although we are experiencing a similar economic context, younger workers are not signing up with the same fervour as previous generations once did. Without growing support from younger generations, the future of our unions looks bleak.
For younger audiences, paid membership exists across a wider range of consumer experiences than ever before. Popular retail brands, like Netflix, Amazon Prime and Beauty Pie are adopting and evolving their loyalty programmes into customisable experiences that leverage digital technology to configure the membership experience based on a customer’s level of commitment. Often these include paid-for member-only experiences that deliver experiential advantages, like personalised experiences and exclusive content.
In contrast, union membership feels outdated, unchanged from digitising an originally analogue process. The category is not one that gets a lot of attention in the digital space, yet unions offer complex and interesting challenges to solve. Without membership models that are adapted to the digital age, unions, and similar organisations, will struggle to meet the expectations of younger audiences. It could be argued that by not meeting these expectations, some unions have potentially lost some relevancy and credibility in the eyes of the emerging younger workforce.
So how do we help unions grow their membership by appealing to a younger audience?
Unions can update their membership model in three ways to help drive sign-up and meet growing expectations…