A union is a distinct organisation separate from an employer. Membership consists of employees, its interests concern conditions of employment, and its primary activity is representing worker interests to management. The primary role of a union in an organisation is to influence an employer's decision about conditions of employment. It also may engage in fraternal activities, political action, and related activities. Labor unions have significant effect on wages, benefits, and working conditions.
Labor unions are stronger in some industries and occupations than in others.
In Kenya, unions came into being as a result of protests against working conditions. The employers involved were foreigners and working conditions were attributed not only to the disorder and uncertainty caused by growth of money economies and commercial production, but equally to outside intervention. Most trade unions therefore came into being either out of a direct confrontation of workers and employers or out of collusion between workers and politicians. It took 50 years before the first real trade union movement became a permanent feature of the industrial relations scene. Between 1900 and 1946, important changes occurred which contributed to the emergence of trade unions.