Ikenna C. Ibeka
Professor Paula Voos & Kevin McQueeney
Perspective on Labor Studies
April 20, 2015

4-1 Written Question
Pluralist

It is fact that interest groups do play a specific role in maintaining democracy. Interest groups are allowed to engage in direct lobbying. Direct lobbying is when an individual or group tries to influence decision maker through diverse means, traditionally and directly like personally contacting, mailing, or making phone calls in order to push a specific political position or sway support for a specific legislative motion or regulatory action. Interest groups play a key role in maintaining democracy; typically interest groups arise when the need to restore the status quo ante or when the interest groups see poor conditions and use troubled times as an advantage to push for policy changes. Interest groups arise when democracy is challenged or disturbed. Unions also play a significant role in maintaining democracy and keeping it intact. Unions are a special kind of interest group. To elaborate, unions are manual workers who look out for their own economic interests. Unions give individual workers economic power as they typically are at a disadvantage when they negotiate or bargain with employers individually. Unions serve as checks and balance for management and employers and ensure they workers are not being mistreated. Unions rectify the imbalance of power by creating equality in bargaining employment contracts. When unions are strong, employers and workers are in balance. Unions foster