Employment Trends - Unionized Sector —trend Is Down…

Unionized labor has been declining over the last 40 years, both as a percentage of the total workforce and in absolute terms. In percentile terms, 29.3% of the employed workforce (non-agricultural sectors) had union membership in 1964, 24.1% in 1977. This percentage had declined to 13.6% by 2000.

Those covered by union contracts — they need not necessarily belong to unions — were 26.9% of the employed workforce in 1977. This rate had declined to 15% by 2000.

Union membership, in absolute numbers, appears to have peaked in the late 1970s at just over 21.7 million. The number had dropped to just shy of 16.5 million by 1999. Those covered by union contracts (union members and others), stood at around 20.8 million in 1983 and had declined to around 18.4 million by 1999.

The labor union movement had its first measurement in the 19th century. In 1897, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported 440,000 people as members of labor unions. Ten years later the number had risen to 2 million, by 1941 to 10.5 million, and topped 20 million in 1968.

Union members, as a percent of non-agricultural employees, reached a peak in 1945 at 35.5% — corresponding to the lower of the curves above. The rate remained at or very near 30% between 1943 through 1962 and then began a slow decline, most of which is shown on the chart above. Historical data in numerical format are presented in Part II of this volume for further reference.

The character of unionized labor is changing; private sector unionized workers are dropping in number, public sector union membership is growing — even as the total union employment is declining. Unionized jobs, and jobs under union contracts, continue to pay higher median wages today as in the past. These subjects, and some discussion of the reasons for declining unionization, are presented in the following panel.

Sources: Trend data from: Barry T. Hirsch, David A. Macpherson, and Wayne G. Vroman, "Estimates of union density by state," Monthly Labor Review, July 2001. Data on union membership from: Historical Statistics of the United States, Part I, p. 178-179, and from Statistical Abstract of the United States, 1980, 1991, 1995, 1996, and 2000 under Labor Organizations, Membership, in each volume.