Major work stoppages down in 2014

In 2014, there were 11 major work stoppages involving 1,000 or more workers and lasting at least one shift. The 11 major work stoppages that began in 2014 were down from 15 in 2013. The 11 stoppages in 2014 equaled the second-lowest annual total since the series began in 1947. The lowest annual total was 5, in 2009.

Major work stoppages that began in 2014 idled 34,000 workers, compared with 55,000 in 2013. Private industry organizations accounted for 9 of the 11 major work stoppages in 2014. In addition, 7 of the 11 major work stoppages occurred in health care and social assistance or in educational services.

There were 80 major work stoppages between 2009 and 2014, an average of 13.3 per year. Four industry groups accounted for 73 percent of all major work stoppages during the 6-year period: health care and social assistance (34 percent), educational services (15 percent), construction (13 percent), and manufacturing (11 percent).

These data are from the Work Stoppages program. To learn more, see “Major Work Stoppages in 2014” (HTML) (PDF). The term “major work stoppage” includes both worker-initiated strikes and employer-initiated lockouts that involve 1,000 or more workers and last for at least one shift.