Unionising

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. The act of collectively organizing individuals to enhance workplace rights
2. The process of workers banding together to create or strengthen a collective organization for labor representation
3. Bringing employees together to establish or grow a formal group that negotiates for employment conditions

Etymology: "Unionising" is the British spelling of "unionizing," the form of "unionise" used for an action in progress. The verb "unionise" is built from "union" plus the suffix "-ise," which turns a noun into a verb meaning to make or bring into a certain state or condition. Here, the state being created is the formation of a union, so to unionise a workforce is to organise its workers into one. The noun "union" comes from Latin "unio," meaning oneness or a joining together, and it passed into English with the sense of a joining of parts into a single whole. Its use for an organised body of workers came much later, once workers began banding together to bargain collectively with employers.