Union decline continues in 2012

From the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) annual report on union membership:

"In 2012, the union membership rate--the percent of wage and salary workers who were members of a union--was 11.3 percent, down from 11.8 percent in 2011, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The number of wage and salary workers belonging to unions, at 14.4 million, also declined over the year. In 1983, the first year for which comparable union data are available, the union membership rate was 20.1 percent, and there were 17.7 million union workers."

Union decline

Union decline: the chart

Unionization rate by state

Today's Workplace blog has a post (with chart) showing the "unionization" rate on a state by state basis. Nationally the rate in 2011 was 13.3%. Top ten states: New York (26.4%). Alaska (24.3%) Hawaii (24.0 %) Washington (21.2%) Michigan (19.2%), New Jersey (18.8%), California (18.5%), Connecticut (17.6%), Oregon and Rhode Island (17.4%), and Nevada (17.3%). The "unionization" rate statistic is inflated a bit because it includes not only union members, but also those represented under a collective bargaining agreement. Louisiana is 46th (5.9%) and Mississippi is 41st (7.0).

Empire State union density declines

Union membership density in New York declined (incremental) for the second year in a row to 24.1%. The recorded high point is 1991 (29.1%). This decline is dramatic for a state with significant union membership, the decline is significantly smaller than the decline recorded nationwide.

Union density static

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) has released its 2011 union members summary which indicates 11.8% of wage and salary workers are union members. This is down slightly from 2010's 11.9% rate. Louisiana is one of 7 states with union membership under 5%. How concentrated is union membership? Note this quote

Over half of the 14.8 million union members in the U.S. lived in just seven states (California, 2.4 million; New York, 1.9 million; Illinois, 0.9 million; Pennsylvania, 0.8 million; Michigan 0.7 million; and New Jersey and Ohio, 0.6 million each), though these states accounted for only about one-third of wage and salary employment nationally.

Union membership declines in 2010

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) provides a yearly statistical summary on union membership. Last week's release of the 2010 report confirmed conventional wisdom by showing union membership declining from 12.3% of the wage and salary workers to 11.9%. Union density also fell in the private sector to 6.9% (as compared to 36.2% in the public sector. The estimated number of workers belonging to unions declined 612,000 to 14.3 million. Union membership rates declined over the year in 33 states and the District of Columbia and rose in 17 states. Union membership declined in Louisiana and Mississippi, but increased in Texas.

Debating a dead horse

More EFCA debate here.

Size matters

Union density matters, that is. This BeyondChron piece dramatically exhibits the external pressure union activists can put on employers to encourage them to "cooperate" in the process of their employees "selecting" union representation in the major hotels in San Francisco. More after the jump

Union statistical data

A treasure trove of statistical data about union density on a national and metropolitan area basis can be found at http://www.unionstats.com/. For example, in 2008, 4.4% of workers in the New Orleans Metropolitan area were members of a union, and 6.3% were covered by a collective bargaining agreement. In the private sector alone the figures are 2.1% members and 2.8% are covered. Public sector membership was 19.6% and covered by CBA stood at 29.6%.