January 28, 2005 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

Unionization rates by industry, 2004

In 2004, the union membership rate for private industry workers was 7.9 percent, about half what it had been in 1983.

Union membership of private industry wage and salary workers, total and selected industries, 2004
[Chart data—TXT]

Among major private industries, transportation and utilities had the highest union membership rate in 2004, at 24.9 percent. Construction, information industries, and manufacturing also had higher-than-average rates.

Financial activities had the lowest unionization rate in 2004—2.0 percent.

These 2004 data on union membership are from the Current Population Survey. Unionization data are for wage and salary workers. Find out more in "Union Members in 2004" (PDF) (TXT), news release USDL 05-112.

Of interest

Spotlight on Statistics: The Recession of 2007–2009

The most recent recession in the United States began in December 2007 and ended in June 2009, though many of the statistics that describe the U.S. economy have yet to return to their pre-recession values. In this Spotlight, we present BLS data that compare the recent recession to previous recessions. Read more »