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Internal Organizing Answers to Objections to Joining a Union  Qwest Internal Organizing is the key to strength and success. The most visible way in which our numbers count is in contract bargaining. When your bargaining committee goes to the table to negotiate a contract, management knows exactly how many employees are members of the union. High numbers strengthen contract bargaining by presenting the employer with a unified workforce. It helps raise a credible threat of effective work actions as it prepares the membership and the local union for executing those actions if needed. A second reason for organizing internally is to provide help in settling grievances or correcting workplace problems. Whether a grievance or problem is covered under your contract or not, internal organizing often can speed a solution and make the solution stick. A third reason for an internal organizing campaign is the organizing and mobilization of members for purposes of lobbying or political activity. Things to remember when you are talking to your co-workers about joining the union: One-on-One Effectiveness Listen. This is the most important thing to learn. Everybody has a tendency to lecture people or to try and deliver a canned pitch. Instead of lecturing, you have to learn to draw people out by asking questions. Show them you care what they think. When you interrupt, you don’t get to hear a person’s real concerns. Don’t make assumptions. Often the issues you think are important are not the issues your co-worker cares about. Keep an open mind so you can be responsive to the person’s concerns. Don’t argue. If somebody makes negative comments, try to find common ground. As much as possible, agree that the person has a valid point. Don’t make the other person feel defensive—if you do, they’ll never change their mind. Don’t evade the tough questions. If you don’t know an answer, don’t try to fake it. People respect honesty. If you don’t know the answer, admit it and tell them you’ll get back to them.