Course Project: Beginning or End of Unions?

· What changes are needed for unions to maintain support from their membership, the community, and the employers? 

· Labor unions are experiencing a decline, which includes political influence and membership. How do politics influence membership decline?

· What generational aspects (i.e., baby boomers, Generation X, Generation Y) have influenced labor unions and will continue to do so? 

· What other external dynamics are impacting labor unions?  For example, how does the global workforce impact union strategies?

· For unions, where were they, where are they, and where do they need to go to remain or regain an active and viable organization in the 21st century?

The objective of this paper is to share your professional understanding related to labor relations and unions based on theory. Include the theories from the discussions, your readings, and the TCOs reviewed throughout the course in this paper. 

· Write a 12- to 15-page paper (excluding title and reference pages) that identifies the challenges that unions face in the 21st century (see assignment criteria above).

· Include all aspects of the assignment criteria outlined.

· Use a 12-point Times Roman or Arial font, double spaced, and 1 in. margins as a standard format.

· Do not include extra lines between paragraphs, and so forth.

· You should use theory throughout your paper, which covers the aspects of the TCOs reviewed in the previous weeks. 

· You should use a minimum of six scholarly resources.

· DeVry University policies are in effect, including the plagiarism policy: Cite in text when quoting (copying information word for word) or using words and thoughts that are not your own.

· Submit assignments in Word documents only to the Dropbox by the due date.

· Graphs and tables are not needed and should not be used in this paper.

· Grammar, punctuation, spelling, and so forth will all be taken into consideration when awarding points.

· Proofread your papers before submitting; spell check is not foolproof.

· This paper is worth 250 points and will be graded on quality of research topic, quality of paper information, use of citations, grammar, and sentence structure.

· Papers are due in Week 7 of this course.

In Week 5, you will submit an outline for this paper. Feedback will be provided to assist you in maximizing points on this paper. I strongly encourage you to review the feedback that will be provided and apply it to this paper.

The following are the best practices in preparing this paper:

· Create a separate title page, which includes name, paper title, and university.

· Include an introductory paragraph that identifies the paper’s content: Introduce the subject and the reason it is important, preview the main ideas and the order in which they will be covered, and establish the document's tone.

· Include a concluding paragraph that provides a summary of the major points from the paper.

· Use a formal writing style for academic writing (sharing information and facts or theory).

· Write your paper in third person.

· Fully describe the concepts and theories (what does the information “mean?”).

· Apply a three step process of writing: plan, write, and complete.

· Use the outline created in Week 5 to provide topical flow.

· When making a statement, for example, “all people who break the law should improve their communication skills to stay out of jail,” you must substantiate that statement.  If that statement is not your own thought or a statistic, cite it. If it is your opinion, state that it is and explain the information that led to that conclusion. Provide enough information to validate and explain statements.

· Minimize copied information, which just teaches you how to copy and paste.  Use critical-thinking skills to understand the material researched.