For release 10:00 a.m. (EST) Friday, January 24, 2014                       USDL-14-0095

Technical information:  (202) 691-6378  *  cpsinfo@bls.gov  *  www.bls.gov/cps
Media contact:          (202) 691-5902  *  PressOffice@bls.gov


                                UNION MEMBERS -- 2013


In 2013, the union membership rate--the percent of wage and salary workers who were 
members of unions--was 11.3 percent, the same as in 2012, the U.S. Bureau of Labor 
Statistics reported today. The number of wage and salary workers belonging to 
unions, at 14.5 million, was little different from 2012. 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.

The data on union membership were collected as part of the Current Population 
Survey (CPS), a monthly sample survey of about 60,000 households that obtains 
information on employment and unemployment among the nation's civilian noninstitutional
population age 16 and over. For more information, see the Technical Note.

Highlights from the 2013 data:

   --Public-sector workers had a union membership rate (35.3 percent) more 
     than five times higher than that of private-sector workers (6.7 percent). 
     (See table 3.)

   --Workers in education, training, and library occupations and in protective 
     service occupations had the highest unionization rate, at 35.3 percent for 
     each occupation group. (See table 3.)

   --Men had a higher union membership rate (11.9 percent) than women (10.5 
     percent). (See table 1.)

   --Black workers were more likely to be union members than white, Asian, or 
     Hispanic workers. (See table 1.)

   --Among states, New York continued to have the highest union membership rate 
     (24.4 percent), and North Carolina had the lowest rate (3.0 percent). (See 
     table 5.)

 
Industry and Occupation of Union Members

In 2013, 7.2 million employees in the public sector belonged to a union, compared 
with 7.3 million workers in the private sector. The union membership rate for 
public-sector workers (35.3 percent) was substantially higher than the rate for 
private-sector workers (6.7 percent). Within the public sector, the union membership 
rate was highest for local government (40.8 percent), which includes employees in 
heavily unionized occupations, such as teachers, police officers, and firefighters. 
In the private sector, industries with high unionization rates included utilities 
(25.6 percent), transportation and warehousing (19.6 percent), telecommunications 
(14.4 percent), and construction (14.1 percent). Low unionization rates occurred 
in agriculture and related industries (1.0 percent), finance (1.0 percent), and in 
food services and drinking places (1.3 percent). (See table 3.)

Among occupational groups, the highest unionization rates in 2013 were in education, 
training, and library occupations and protective service occupations (35.3 percent 
each). Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations (2.1 percent) and sales and 
related occupations (2.9 percent) had the lowest unionization rates. (See table 3.)

Selected Characteristics of Union Members

The union membership rate was higher for men (11.9 percent) than for women (10.5 
percent) in 2013. (See table 1.) The gap between their rates has narrowed 
considerably since 1983, when rates for men and women were 24.7 percent and 
14.6 percent, respectively.

Among major race and ethnicity groups, black workers had a higher union membership
rate in 2013 (13.6 percent) than workers who were white (11.0 percent), Asian
(9.4 percent), or Hispanic (9.4 percent). 

By age, the union membership rate was highest among workers ages 45 to 64--14.0 
percent for those ages 45 to 54 and 14.3 percent for those ages 55 to 64.

Full-time workers were about twice as likely as part-time workers to be union 
members, 12.5 percent compared with 6.0 percent.

Union Representation

In 2013, 16.0 million wage and salary workers were represented by a union. 
This group includes both union members (14.5 million) and workers who report no 
union affiliation but whose jobs are covered by a union contract (1.5 million). 
(See table 1.) Private-sector employees comprised more than half (810,000) of 
the 1.5 million workers who were covered by a union contract but were not 
members of a union. (See table 3.)

Earnings

In 2013, among full-time wage and salary workers, union members had median 
usual weekly earnings of $950, while those who were not union members had 
median weekly earnings of $750. In addition to coverage by a collective 
bargaining agreement, this earnings difference reflects a variety of 
influences, including variations in the distributions of union members and 
nonunion employees by occupation, industry, firm size, or geographic region. 
(See table 2.)

Union Membership by State

In 2013, 30 states and the District of Columbia had union membership rates 
below that of the U.S. average, 11.3 percent, while 20 states had higher rates. 
All states in the Middle Atlantic and Pacific divisions reported union membership
rates above the national average, and all states in the East South Central and
West South Central divisions had rates below it. Union membership rates 
declined over the year in 26 states, rose in 22 states and the District of 
Columbia, and remained unchanged in 2 states. (See table 5.)

Nine states had union membership rates below 5.0 percent in 2013, with North 
Carolina having the lowest rate (3.0 percent). The next lowest rates were 
recorded in Arkansas (3.5 percent), Mississippi and South Carolina (3.7 
percent each), and Utah (3.9 percent). Three states had union membership
rates over 20.0 percent in 2013: New York (24.4 percent), Alaska (23.1 percent),
and Hawaii (22.1 percent). 

State union membership levels depend on both the employment level and union 
membership rate. The largest numbers of union members lived in California 
(2.4 million) and New York (2.0 million). Over half of the 14.5 million union 
members in the U.S. lived in just seven states (California, 2.4 million; New 
York, 2.0 million; Illinois, 0.9 million; Pennsylvania, 0.7 million; and 
Michigan, New Jersey, and Ohio, 0.6 million each), though these states 
accounted for only about one-third of wage and salary employment nationally.

Texas had about one-fourth as many union members as New York, despite having 
2.7 million more wage and salary employees. Conversely, North Carolina and 
Hawaii had comparable numbers of union members (117,000 and 121,000,
respectively), though North Carolina's wage and salary employment level 
(3.9 million) was more than seven times that of Hawaii (549,000).

Technical Note

   The estimates in this release are obtained from the Current Population Survey (CPS),
which provides the basic information on the labor force, employment, and unemployment.
The survey is conducted monthly for the Bureau of Labor Statistics by the U.S. Census
Bureau from a scientifically selected national sample of about 60,000 eligible house-
holds. The union membership and earnings data  are tabulated from one-quarter of the
CPS monthly sample and are limited to wage and salary workers. All self-employed workers
are excluded.

   Beginning in January of each year, data reflect revised population controls used in 
the CPS. Additional information about population controls is available on the BLS 
website at www.bls.gov/cps/documentation.htm#pop.

   Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals
upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Federal Relay Service: (800) 877-8339.

Reliability of the estimates

   Statistics based on the CPS are subject to both sampling and nonsampling error. When
a sample, rather than the entire population, is surveyed, there is a chance that the 
sample estimates may differ from the "true" population values they represent. The exact
difference, or sampling error, varies depending upon the particular sample selected,
and this variability is measured by the standard error of the estimate. There is about
a  90-percent chance, or level of confidence, that an estimate based on a sample will
differ by no more than 1.6  standard errors from the "true" population value because
of sampling error. BLS analyses are generally conducted at the 90-percent level of
confidence. The state section of this release preserves the long-time practice of
highlighting the direction of the movements in state  union membership rates and
levels regardless of their statistical significance.

   The CPS data also are affected by nonsampling error. Nonsampling error can occur for
many reasons, including the failure to sample a segment of the population, inability
to obtain information for all respondents in the sample, inability or unwillingness of
respondents to provide correct information, and errors made in the collection or
processing of the data.

   For a full discussion of the reliability of data from the CPS and information on
estimating standard errors, see the Household Data section of the "Explanatory Notes and
Estimates of Error" available on the BLS website at www.bls.gov/cps/eetech_methods.pdf.

Definitions

   The principal definitions used in this release are described briefly below.

   Union members. Data refer to members of a labor union or an employee association
similar to a union.

   Union membership rate. Data refer to the proportion of total wage and salary workers who 
are union members.
   
   Represented by unions. Data refer to both union members and workers who report no
union affiliation but whose jobs are covered by a union or an employee association
contract.

   Nonunion. Data refer to workers who are neither members of a union nor represented
by a union on their job.

   Usual weekly earnings. Data represent earnings before taxes and other deductions and
include any overtime pay, commissions, or tips usually received (at the main job in
the case of multiple jobholders). Prior to 1994, respondents were asked how much they
usually earned per week. Since January 1994, respondents have been asked to identify the
easiest way for them to report earnings (hourly, weekly, biweekly, twice monthly, monthly,
annually, other) and how much they usually earn in the reported time period. Earnings
reported on a basis other than weekly are converted to a weekly equivalent. The term
"usual" is as perceived by the respondent. If the respondent asks for a definition of
usual, interviewers are instructed to define the term as more than half of the weeks
worked during the past 4 or 5 months.

   Median earnings. The median is the amount which divides a given earnings distribution
into two equal groups, one having earnings above the median and the other having earnings
below the median. The estimating procedure places each reported or calculated weekly
earnings value into $50-wide intervals which are centered around multiples of $50. The
actual value is estimated through the linear interpolation of the interval in which the
median lies.

   Wage and salary workers. Workers who receive wages, salaries, commissions, tips,
payment in kind, or piece rates. The group includes employees in both the private and
public sectors. Union membership and earnings data exclude all self-employed workers,
both those with incorporated businesses as well as those with unincorporated businesses.

   Full-time workers. Workers who usually work 35 hours or more per week at their sole
or principal job.

   Part-time workers. Workers who usually work fewer than 35 hours per week at their
sole or principal job.

   Hispanic or Latino ethnicity. Refers to persons who identified themselves in the
enumeration process as being Spanish, Hispanic, or Latino. Persons whose ethnicity is
identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race.