Why workers need unions
The Rana Plaza building collapse in Bangladesh should demonstrate the importance of having a union that would allow the workers to demand safe working conditions, as well as better wages. The entire community would benefit if the nation of Bangladesh had unions demanding better wages, resulting in better financing available for public services as well. Read through these articles:
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/AS_BANGLADESH_DESTRUCTION_AND_SUR...
http://www.oregonlive.com/today/index.ssf/2013/05/bangladesh_garment_fir...
One key point from the article is the fact that the building owner "was a feared neighborhood political enforcer". The workers had no ability to stand up against assurances that the building was safe, because they would lose a months pay. If they had a union they could have stayed out without such fear. Instead, the workers were given no choice and OVER 1,000 were killed.
So, when you buy clothes, check the label for a union bug.