Introduction Organized labor unions have seen a decline in membership over the last 20 years because of the loss

of manufacturing jobs in the United States. The manufacturing industry has see it labor force reduced through outsourcing and shifting of operations to cheaper operating environments in developing countries. Factors that have caused this shift include tougher environmental regulations, labor requirements and health issues. This paper looks at steps that can be taken by labor unions to ensure membership maintenance and that the unions remain strong and healthy and also it will look at steps companies can take to grow their manufacturing facilities in the United States. Labor Union perspective Some of the steps that can be taken in order to strengthen labor unions and to increase membership amid continued decline includes: Strenghtening the National Labor Act; fostering start up unions to organize freelancers; expand the union to new industries; improve their online organizing efforts; pass labor reforms in the states; higher penalties for employer violations of the act; easier access to worksites by employees; if the two sides reach an impasse, there should be binding arbitration; and just the same way employers are able to get injunctions for violations of secondary boycott provision in the act, it should be made easier for unions to also be able to get injunctions against employers who violate the act (Sachs, 2007). The National Labor Relations Act can be strengthened by dismantling anti union rulings piece by piece. Though the people appointed to head NLRB are conservatives, the board is also staffed with union friendly career people who can be of great help and advantage to unions in pursuing legal goals. Some of the rulings that undermine organized union are, the employer's right to go out of business, the permanent replacement of strikers, obstruction of solidarity in workers, antiunion discrimination and implementation upon impasse, where employers make the final decision in case of and impasse in decisions. The union can find a violation of labor laws as a way of making employers acknowledge employee rights (). Freelancers unions have increasingly been prevalent especially with increased freelance work that can be found whether online or offline. Since independent contractors and freelancers are ineligible for union benefits, labor unions can foster and support individuals who want to start up freelancers unions, thereby helping the labor movement become stronger and grow its presence in the labor market. Labor unions can also expand to other new industries such as online services sector or even biotech industry. Been able to find new industries and finding ways to organize workers in those industries for their collective interest would increase the membership in labor unions and strengthen it giving it a stronger presence (Sachs, 2007). Labor unions can also foster growth in online organized groups. Various unions such as SEIU or teamsters have a "Join Us" section in their websites and these have helped countless persons to be able to join them. The unions can also use social media to be able to reach out people who want get in touch with trade unions. This is especially a good way of getting young people to

join the labor unions taking into account that most union members are from the older generation when unions were vibrant (Sachs, 2007). The unions can also pursue and pass labor reforms to the states. This is especially so in states that attempts to repeal certain union legislations as in the case of Colorado and Iowa which repealed union-busting laws (right to work statutes). Higher penalties for employer violations of the act should also be pushed for with employees getting easier access to worksites. If the two sides reach an impasse, there should be binding arbitration and just the same way employers are able to get injunctions for violations of secondary boycott provision in the act, it should be made easier for unions to also be able to get injunctions against employers who violate the act. These steps and actions will increase membership and strengthen labor unions (Sachs, 2007). Company perspective Companies have been increasing outsourcing their manufacturing facilities and business processes to cheaper foreign countries thereby causing job losses in the U.S. various steps though can be taken by the companies to retain and grow manufacturing facilities in the U.S. These include: outsourcing cheaper components from cheaper locations and assembling products in manufacturing facilities in the US; Bargain collectively over fair business climate and adoption of legislations that are sustainable but less restrictive, for instance concentration in green strategies and a reduction in pollution abatement costs. They should also collectively call for legislations that strengthen manufacturing investment in the US. Better connection organizations can also be formed in order to connect manufacturing companies to with local and regional sources for products and services cheaply (Dendler, 2006). A reshoring initiative where manufacturing jobs are returned back to the U.S. is another step that will be able to help the growth of manufacturing industries in the U.S. since the objective of conducting business outside the U.S. was to increase market share, reduce costs, increase profitability, increase revenue and provide superior customer experience, a survey showed that 60-75% of companies with over $1billion revenue had already met their objectives and should therefore shift from offshore to closer demand concentrated regions such as the U.S. their has been rising labor force in the developed countries due to development of labor unions in these countries and therefore the cost of moving closer to demand laden regions would be nullified. The companies can also practice lean manufacturing in order to retain manufacturing in the U.S and to further grow the sector (Nash-Hoff, 2011). References Dendler, M.J. (2006). Outsourcing Challenges and Solutions: the example of craft trades. Retrieved from http://www.neumann.edu/academics/divisions/business/journal/Review_SP06/pdf/woodworking outsourcing.pdf Nash-Hoff, M. (2011). Can American Manufacturing be saved? Retrieved from http://savingusmanufacturing.com/blog/category/outsourcing/ Sachs, S. (2007). Organizing workers in the pre-EFCA era. Retrieved from http://mydd.com/2007/6/30/organizing-workers-in-the-pre-efca-era