unionism

noun

union·​ism ˈyün-yə-ˌni-zəm 

: the principle or policy of forming or adhering to a union: such as

a

capitalized : adherence to the policy of a firm federal union between the states of the United States especially during the Civil War period

b

: the principles, theory, advocacy, or system of trade unions

Examples of unionism in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Home Front: Black Women Unionists in the Confederacy The resistance and unionism of enslaved and freed Black women in the midst of the Confederacy is an epic story of sacrifice for nation and citizenship. —JSTOR Daily, 24 June 2024

And European social democracy was built on a foundation of trade unionism and working-class solidarity. —Francis Fukuyama, Foreign Affairs, 14 Aug. 2018

Advertisement This win came under the leadership of Shawn Fain, who has rejected the corrupt business unionism of his predecessors and embraced the militant spirit of the Congress of Industrial Organizations of the mid-20th century. —Jim Miller, San Diego Union-Tribune, 27 Nov. 2023

In this period, Jacobs, who grew up in South Africa and came of age in the 1980s, told me, unionism evolved beyond the narrow concerns of the shop floor, into a labor movement that could make connections between apartheid and the conditions of workers. —Liza Featherstone, The New Republic, 29 Oct. 2021

Word History

First Known Use

1831, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

unionism

noun

union·​ism ˈyün-yə-ˌniz-əm 

1

: the principle or policy of forming or keeping a union

2

capitalized : support of a strong federal union before or during the American Civil War

3

: a theory or policy that supports labor unions

unionist

-yə-nəst

noun often capitalized