The percentage of workers belonging to a union (or "density") in the United States peaked in 1954 at almost 35% (citation needed) and the total number of union members peaked in 1979 at an estimated 21.0 million.
The union membership rate increased over the year in the public sector by 1.2 percentage points to 34.8 percent, reflecting a decline in total public-sector wage and salary employment (-391,000).
The number of employed union members has declined by 2.9 million since 1983. During the same time, the number of all wage and salary workers grew from 88.3 million to 133.7 million. Consequently, the union membership rate was 20.1 percent in 1983 and declined to 11.1 percent in 2015.
Labor > Trade union membership: Countries Compared
| # | COUNTRY | AMOUNT |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sweden | 82% |
| =2 | Finland | 76% |
| =2 | Denmark | 76% |
| 4 | Norway | 57% |
Largest unions
| Name | est. | Members (approx) |
|---|---|---|
| American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees | 1932 | 1,459,511 |
| Teamsters | 1903 | 1,400,000 |
| United Food and Commercial Workers | 1979 | 1,300,000 |
| United Auto Workers | 1935 | 990,000 |
The overall decline in union membership is due in part to the changing job landscape. Service and healthcare jobs are some of the fastest-growing, but their unionization rates have not increased apace. The manufacturing sector, which historically has made up the majority of unions, has been on the decline for decades.
The average annual cost of union dues is $400, or about two hours of pay per month. There is a disinclination of unions toward the contingent worker. Unions want full-time dues payers.
While private-sector union membership fell from 9% in 2000 to 6.2% in 2019, it edged up slightly to 6.3% in 2020. Similarly, public-sector membership dropped from 36.9% in 2000 to 33.6% in 2019, then rose to 34.8% in 2020. Union membership rates in the private sector declined nearly every year since 1983.
Unions help protect employees from unjust dismissal through collective bargaining agreements (CBA). Because of this, most union employees cannot be fired without "just cause." This is unlike many nonunion workers who are considered "at-will" employees and can be fired at any time for almost any reason.
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