The Ethics of Trade Union Leaders.

This article discusses the ethics of trade union leaders. In this paper, the author gives an account of the premisses from which trade union leaders act and to examine, in a general way, their aims, their code of trade union morality, their loyalties and to show their attitude to the standard of social behaviour in the society which they purport to change. It is not a comprehensive examination. Some aspects of behaviour are barely mentioned for example, the problem of remuneration whether these men should be paid like the workers they represent or as businessmen is not discussed. There is considerable discussion of the problem of honours, but this can cast only an oblique light on their approach to what is an appropriate standard of social behaviour. Throughout this paper only full-time general secretaries and presidents of trade unions are classified as trade union leaders. There is an ethical basis for decision-making in all trade unions. The objectives of a trade union tell one what the union is hoping to achieve, but the traditions stipulate the kind of action and behaviour to be adopted in pursuit of those objectives. Thus, the behaviour of trade unionists is not formally rational. One reaches a different conclusion when the behaviour of trade union leaders is measured by the standard of the minority. This is a standard that is related to the ultimate purpose of trade unions and shows a correlation between present behaviour and intended social and economic changes.