ATA Interpreters Division

Professional association or labor union: what is the difference?

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[four human-shaped pieces of a puzzle together]“Did you read what the Interpreters Union just published?,” a colleague asked eagerly. “Specifically, to which interpreters’ union are you referring?,” I replied rolling my eyes. “The Interpreters Union, the one with the [fill in the blank social media] page/channel!,” exclaimed my colleague. [Big sigh] “That’s not a real union,” I replied.

This conversation happens too often for comfort. It is triggered by a lack of awareness or information and the proliferation of social media channels. So, what exactly is a labor union? And why would we need one if we already have a professional association?

“One of the pillars of our democracy is our freedom of association enshrined in the First Amendment of the US Constitution. This is the right of individuals to join or leave groups of one’s own choosing and for the group to take collective action to pursue the interests of its members.” In NAACP v. Alabama, the Supreme Court of the United States decided that, in many cases, people can engage in effective speech only when they join with others.[i] Both professional associations and labor unions are the embodiment of taking collective action.

As members of ATA, we belong to a professional association whose members are practitioners of essentially two related professions (translation and interpretation), sellers of these practitioners’ services (language companies), educators of these practitioners and students of these professions. It is a motley group of people, sometimes with conflicting interests, who all share an interest in the translation and interpretation (T & I) professions and the language service industry.

The US Internal Revenue Service classifies professional associations as business leagues[ii] whose members have a common business interest and come together to promote such common interest but do not engage collectively in regular business of a kind ordinarily carried out for profit. Promotion of the common interest includes activities such as:

  • Holding regular meetings of its members.
  • Promoting high industry standards
  • Educating its members
  • Attempting to influence legislation germane to the common business interests of the organization’s members.

All of these activities can be, and frequently are, pursued by labor unions as well. However, professional associations are not allowed to exchange price or other sensitive business data among their members who, for the most part, are competitors. In fact, ATA has an extensive Antitrust Compliance Policy published on its website.[iii] Information-sharing programs, standardized contracts, operating hours, accounting, safety codes, or transportation methods can be seen as disguised means of fixing prices.[iv]

Labor unions, on the other hand, can and should be involved in such activities. According to the US Department of Labor,[v] the US Internal Revenue Service[vi] classifies labor organizations as an association of workers who have combined to protect or promote their interests by bargaining collectively with their employers to secure better working conditions, wages, and similar benefits. Financial reports, constitutions and bylaws of labor unions are available to the public and posted online on the US Department of Labor website. Unions are membership-driven, democratic organizations governed by federal and state laws and regulations that require financial transparency and integrity, fair elections, and fair representation of all workers. Their main goal is to negotiate a contract (collective bargaining agreement) with their employer.

It should be noted that freelancers are prohibited from negotiating as a group except in certain special circumstances, such as when they have successfully proven that they are misclassified employees or state laws have been amended to cover a specific group of workers.[vii]

Having a social media presence or filing articles of incorporation with the word “union” and statements such as “we are a union of…” does not a labor union make. If you wish to know whether you’re dealing with a real labor union, find out whether the outfit has a collective bargaining agreement (union contract) with an employer as well as dues-paying members, periodic elections, regular meetings of members and is registered with the US Department of Labor. No group contract = no union.

There are several state-level unions in the US that do represent both freelance and staff interpreters.

In addition:

  • The International Association of Conference Interpreters (AIIC) has several collective bargaining agreements covering freelance interpreters working with international organizations.
  • Many staff interpreters working in hospitals have joined the already established bargaining units that cover other types of hospital workers.

In summary, when you decide which organizations to join, be sure you know whether the group in question is a professional association, a labor union or just some social media group. Find out their scope, their mission, their bylaws, their elections process and their affiliation to other organizations. Make sure the benefits they offer and contributions they ask (if any) are a good fit for you.

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[i] Advocacy 101 for Interpreters and Translators, by Milena Calderari-Waldron and Helen Eby, © NAJIT 2017.

[ii] IRC 501(c)(6)

[iii] ATA website, Home / About Us / Policies and Procedures / Antitrust Compliance Policy

[iv] Guide to AntiTrust Laws, Dealings with Competitors. n.d. February 14, 2026 < https://www.ftc.gov/advice-guidance/competition-guidance/guide-antitrust-laws/dealings-competitors>

[v] https://beta.dol.gov/policy-regulations/protections-rights/unions-collective-bargaining

[vi] IRC 501(c)(5) Labor and agricultural organizations

[vii] RCW 41.56.157 Application of chapter to language access providers—Governor as public employer—Procedure—Intent—Report.

 

Milena Calderari-Waldron is a long-time member of the Interpreters Division, currently serving as assistant administrator.

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

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