Norma Rae is a film about a woman named Norma who works for minimum wage in a textile factory. A trade unionist named Reuben comes to her town to give a speech about unionizing the textile factory and Norma decides to join his cause. In this film Rueben is identified as the main leader in unionizing the textile factory, however, Norma becomes his protégé, in a sense, and as the film progresses she learns from Rueben how to inspire workers to fight against inequality and the discrimination they face in their unpleasant work environment. This is proof that one of the biggest myths about leadership, that leaders are born and not made, is actually a myth (p.9). Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Rueben's skills as a leader are evident throughout the film, as you would expect from a man in his profession. However, thanks to her ability to motivate others to recognize their potential, it is Norma who becomes the key figure in leading the garment workers to form a union. James Burns defines transformational leadership as “a process in which leaders and followers lift each other to higher levels of morality and motivation” (p. 86). I believe this is a perfect example of a team leadership principle that Rueben, and ultimately Norma, use to aid the process of forming a union. According to Burns, the main component of transformation is the leader's ability to observe the real needs of his followers and to influence or modify anything that may hinder those needs (p. 86). On the other hand, Norma also sometimes displays characteristics of an autocratic leadership style, which, in some cases, hinders their goal of forming a union. She is very work-focused and task-oriented, especially when it comes to forming the union. In one scene he gets into an argument with one of his colleagues for not showing up for work on time, which causes precious time to be wasted and unnecessary effort to be spent arguing instead of focusing on the job at hand (p. 47). in this film every type of power listed in the textbook is present in one way or another. The book states that reward power is when a person in a position of power exchanges positive incentives to achieve desired behavior from an individual. When Norma first begins to inform her coworkers about the benefits of forming a union, the plant manager tries to use the power of reward by offering her a promotion and a raise in hopes of preventing her from forming a union. The next type of power represented in this film is coercive power, which is the ability to withhold unwanted sanctions in exchange for desired behavior. The best example of this is when the plant manager threatens to fire Norma and ultimately does so and even has her arrested when she refuses to leave the plant. Another type of power in this film is legitimate power, which comes from perceived authority and is a product of position. It is quite obvious that the textile plant manager is the prime example of legitimate power due to his position in the factory. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom EssayAlso on What is shown in this film is the power of experts, which comes from the perception that an individual has expertise on a specific issue. Rueben is the character in this film who best portrays the power of experts because his. 73-74).