Union membership drops to record low in 2022

[brooklynite]

Source: Politico

Union membership hit an all-time low in 2022 despite a surge in organizing efforts that emerged during the pandemic.

The percentage of U.S. workers who belong to a union dropped from 10.3 percent to 10.1 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Thursday, as the job market added non-unionized workers at a faster rate than unionized workers. That’s the lowest the figure has been since the agency first started tracking comparable data nearly four decades ago.

The decline comes despite the highest union approval rate in decades and a pro-union administration — and backs up earlier findings that while many workers view organized labor favorably, that doesn’t always mean they want to join its ranks. Gallup reported earlier this year that while 71 percent of Americans view unions favorably, 58 percent of non-unionized workers say they are “not interested at all” in joining a union.

Workers launched a series of high-profile unionization drives in 2022, including at nationwide chains Amazon and Starbucks. The federal agency that oversees union elections, National Labor Relations Board, reported a 53 percent uptick in petitions filed during the fiscal year.

Read more: https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/19/union-membership-drops-to-record-low-in-2022-00078525

[The Grand Illuminist]

1. Blame Right To Freeload

Many will not make sacrifices needed to keep unions delivering benefits needed in life. That is by paying dues.

[NullTuples]

3. But they'll gamble on the stock market via 401k's and Bitcoin....

I do not understand most human beings.

[KPN]

5. Yup.

[NullTuples]

2. 58% not interested...I wonder how many of those are Republicans working jobs where they'd benefit?

[Rebl2]

7. My husband

used to work for PO and the people he worked with were majority Republicans. They were first ones to run to the union if they had a problem.

[NullTuples]

13. Yes! Both postal-spouses-of that I've worked with in the 10 yrs were GOP & so were their husbands!

[Fiendish Thingy]

4. So just to clarify:

Although the total number of unionized workers has grown, so has the number of non-union workers, resulting in a statistical shrinking of the percentage of unionized workers overall.

With only 3.7% unemployment, that probably couldn’t be avoided.

The test will be when the next recession comes, and unemployment bounces back to its typical level of around 5%, will the share of unionized workers increase due to a higher rate of layoffs among non-union workers?

[DENVERPOPS]

6. Reagan

is smiling from his grave...........and of course HW also had a major hand in the destruction of Unions!!!!!!!

The IRS and USPS are operating at 40% less workers than they need. If they were at normal staffing, I bet the title/subject of this article would cease to exist.....

With the cost of living skyrocketing, I would hope that Amazon workers and Starbucks workers would be unionizing in the near future.
Maybe even fast food workers too.......

[jimfields33]

9. Weird how Reagan was so powerful that no president has been able to

Recind anything he’s done. It seems after he left, everything he did was kept by the next six presidents. Everyone complains about Reagan but keeps all his policies. So bazaar.

[NullTuples]

14. Chart out how often Democrats had a trifecta...IIR it's like 2x 2 yrs.

Missed chances, but apparently they already had soo much on their plates.

[former9thward]

15. Reagan never had a trifecta.

The House was controlled by the Democrats all 8 years.

[Cheezoholic]

16. Wasn't a matter of recinding anything, everybody and their drunk uncle on all sides

bought into the bullshit Neo-Liberal economic policies that he and Thatcher were selling. Hell it took 30 years for our side to wake up to that corporate con job that empowered the wealthy more than any of the "free" society's in history. Not since the times when monarchy's ruled was power and wealth so centralized in the hands of so few. These policies couldn't be rescinded because of the general favor both sides had for them.

The last 2 Democratic presidents began to realize how horrible and deceptive Neo-Liberalism is and how much damage economically those policies had levied not just here but worldwide and each of their tenures have begun to lead in doing something about it. It's not going to be easy as there are many in our party that still believe in at least some aspect of it. They are slowly falling out of favor as more progressive, younger, minds bring a new wisdom, perspective and fresh ideas hopefully correcting an extremely misguided ideal that has no place in the Democratic party.

[DENVERPOPS]

17. No kidding

Remember all his Dem followers? The Reagan Democrats???????

A lot of the things Reagan did, also helped ALL politicians profit personally..........esp the MASSIVE income tax cuts to the upper income people. He still holds the records for the largest tax cuts in History, and all concentrated on the wealthy. He also actually increased the middle and lower class taxes by a significant amount at the exact same time. Including his incredible scam of doubling the withholding on the massive population of simple wage earners............Again, it wasn't truly Reagan, he was just a "front man" for HW and his group, much the same as the role that W played for Cheney's group..........

[LT Barclay]

8. I'd like to join one as a healthcare worker, but my specialty doesn't have one. Just a useless

professional association the APTA.

[LudwigPastorius]

10. "while many workers view organized labor favorably,...

that doesn’t always mean they want to join its ranks"

What the shit, America?

(seems like I've been asking that question a lot lately)

[tiredtoo]

11. I like to tell the younger fellows of my acquaintance

How I retired from my union job at 56 with a nice pension I am still enjoying some 26 years later.

[brooklynite]

12. It is partly a question of self-assurance.

If you don't feel the need to protect your job/salary, you don't see the personal need for a Union. I worked for the MTA for 32 years and was always comfortable with my ability to keep my job and get paid what my work was worth. I also retired with a nice (State) pension.