Tips and Tricks for Using Benefits at Your Local Union
Union leaders can promote Union Plus benefits with the free digital and print materials located at UnionPlusLeaders.org.
Don’t know where to start with Union Plus benefits? Here’s a few ways to get your members engaged:
1. Pick Their Brains
Conduct a survey to find out your members' awareness of the national Union Plus benefits and to determine interest in local benefits.
2. Send A Letter
Use a "consumer benefits" mailing as a recruiting devise and as a way to encourage current members to participate in the Union Plus and local benefit programs. One local union mailed a letter to targeted workers that they were recruiting as well as to union members as part of their "new member kit." The letter afforded the union a unique opportunity to directly address consumer concerns and needs expressed by their members and potential members through the local benefits survey. You can find sample letters to use here.
3. Use "Guerilla" Marketing at the Workplace
Union members at one workplace, in response to company management forbidding them to wear any union insignias or apparel, wore buttons at the worksite that read: "I Am A Smart Consumer." When a co-worker asked why the union member was "A Smart Consumer," the union member's response was "I participate in our union's Union Plus benefits programs which saves my family hundreds of dollars each year." See how the benefits can save working family's money here.
4. Make House "Calls"
One local union, when faced with a decertification effort in their County Government Department, decided to use their members to place phone calls to the homes of public employee members. Additionally, the local decided to expand the benefits and services that they were developing by specifically including those that were a priority to the members in the unit.
5. Gotta Have a Gimmick
One employer informed the union that they believed the workers were stealing the band-aides provided to them by the company. As a result, the company decided that it would no longer provide band-aides for free. The union contacted Union Privilege and was provided with "Union Plus band-aide packets," which were distributed throughout the workplace with this note: "The union trusts the workers at this plant." It turned the tide of the campaign in the union's favor.
6. Everybody Loves Their Picture
A member benefits card is a practical and excellent recruitment tool. It can be simple or a little more complex. Some locals have a simple card with the union name and logo and list of benefits and phone numbers. One local went as far as including a photo for identification as well as information on their benefits. This is helpful for immigrant workers. The photo card can be cost efficient and very practical.