When union whispers start circulating among your staff, most leaders panic. 

They tighten policies, hold mandatory meetings, or double down on compliance.

Phillip Wilson, president of the Labor Relations Institute and founder of Approachable Leadership, invites us to ask a better question: What broke before the whispers began?

With decades of labor relations expertise, Phil breaks down how the unions employees seek are almost always symptoms of leadership they don't trust. 

Listen in as he explains the power distance gap, the difference between compliant and committed teams, and why the best union avoidance strategy is building a workplace people never want to leave.

You'll discover how vulnerability, relationships, and the hero assumption change retention from the inside out.

In this conversation, Phil breaks down:

• The real reason employees start union conversations.
• How approachability reduces turnover intentions by 78%.
• Why employees still fear leaders who say, “My door is always open.”
• What young or untrained supervisors get wrong about leadership.
• Why leaders must stop promoting top performers without people skills.
• The difference between employee relations and employee relationships.
• How theory X mindsets create compliant teams, while “hero assumptions” create committed ones.

Ideas Worth Sharing:

• “If you view your leader as approachable, you have 78% lower turnover intention than someone who rates their leader as unapproachable.” - Phillip Wilson
• “No one wakes up thinking they're the villain of the story.” - Phillip Wilson
• “The way you don't have a union is by doing a good job of running your ship. And that's not just a union avoidance strategy. That's how you take great care of your guests. That's how you take great care of your team.” - Phillip Wilson

Resources mentioned:

• Traction by Gino Wickman
• Rocket Fuel by Gino Wickman & Mark C. Winters
• The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni
• The Coaching Habit by Michael Bungay Stanier
• The Leader-Shift Playbook by Phillip Wilson
• All Books by Phillip Wilson
• EOS (Entrepreneurial Operating System)

About the Guest

Phillip Wilson is the president of the Labor Relations Institute (LRI) and founder of Approachable Leadership. He is the author of multiple leadership books, including The Approachability Playbook, Left of Boom, and his newest release, The Leader-Shift Playbook. Phil has been featured in The New York Times, Forbes, MSNBC, and Fox Business, and has testified before Congress as an expert on labor relations and workplace transparency. Through his research-backed approach to closing the power distance gap, Phil has helped organizations across industries create cultures where employees feel valued, heard, and committed long before union organizing ever becomes a consideration.

Connect with Phillip: LinkedIn | LRI Consulting | Approachable Leadership