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Concept
Labor unions in the United States
Summary
Labor unions represent United States workers in many industries recognized under US labor law since the 1935 enactment of the National Labor Relations Act. Their activity today centers on collective bargaining over wages, benefits, and working conditions for their membership, and on representing their members in disputes with management over violations of contract provisions. Larger trade unions also typically engage in lobbying activities and electioneering at the state and federal level.
Most unions in the United States are aligned with one of two larger umbrella organizations: the AFL–CIO created in 1955, and the Change to Win Federation (current Strategic Organizing Center) (SOC) which split from the AFL–CIO in 2005. Both advocate policies and legislation on behalf of workers in the United States and Canada, and take an active role in politics. The AFL–CIO is especially concerned with global trade issues.
The percentage of workers belonging to a union (or total labor union "density") varies by country. In 2022 it was 10.1% in the United States, compared to 20.1% in 1983. There were 14.3 million members in the U.S. in 2022, down from 17.7 million in 1983. Union membership in the private sector has fallen to 6.0%, one fifth that of public sector workers, at 33.1% (2022). From a global perspective, in 2016 the US had the fifth lowest trade union density of the 36 OECD member nations.
In the 21st century, the most prominent unions are among public sector employees such as city employees, government workers, teachers and police. Members of unions are disproportionately older, male, and residents of the Northeast, the Midwest, and California. Union workers average 10-30% higher pay than non-union in the United States after controlling for individual, job, and labor market characteristics.
Although much smaller compared to their peak membership in the 1950s, American unions remain a political factor, both through mobilization of their own memberships and through coalitions with like-minded activist organizations around issues such as immigrant rights, environmental protections, trade policy, health care, and living wage campaigns.
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