<prompt> Human: Hopefully this is ok to ask here...Ive been going over the CSU site for information but I was hoping someone here might have insider knowledge they could share.She would be in an IT staff position, but there is a union and they require 1 of salary to be a part of. It was mentioned that she could choose not to join the union, but there would still be a fee. That didnt make a whole lot of sense to me. Anyone able to share some light on unions and how it might impact her current and future earnings?  <response>: Ive only lived in right-to-work states where fair share is illegal, so Im not experienced with fair share, but Im covered by a union which is actually currently negotiating a CBA. My working conditions and earnings will improve significantly once our CBA is ratified. If shes in a fair share state or hell, in any job that has a union worth its salt, I strongly recommend joining the union. If a union is big enough to have a CBA for an entire university, theyre definitely big enough to have staffers. If I were your girlfriend, my first step would be calling up the staff representative assigned to my worksitedepartmentetc. and talking with them, asking them to explain the CBA I assume fair share CBA, and other benefitsperks that come with being part of the union economies of scale. Will it affect her future earnings? Well, unionized workers, on average, make more than non-union workers doing comparable work. If theres a CBA theres almost definitely a grievance procedure if something bad happens to her on the job. Theres probably a policy that has to be followed if they want to terminate her. If she wants to apply for a future job at a different organization anywhere, she does not have to disclose that she was a member of the union and its actually a violation of federal law if the employer asks her that question in an interview, or in general. 