U.S. Approval of Labor Unions at Highest Point Since 1965
By: Justin McCarthy (Gallup. com)
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Story Highlights
- 71% of Americans now approve of labor unions
- 40% of union members say their membership is "extremely important"
- Employee engagement higher among nonunion workers
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Seventy-one percent of Americans now approve of labor unions. Although statistically similar to last year's 68%, it is up from 64% before the pandemic and is the highest Gallup has recorded on this measure since 1965.
These data are from Gallup's annual Work and Education survey, collected Aug. 1-23.
The latest approval figure comes amid a burst of 2022 union victories across the country, with high-profile successes at major American corporations such as Amazon and Starbucks. The National Labor Relations Board reported a 57% increase in union election petitions filed during the first six months of fiscal year 2021.
Support for labor unions was highest in the 1950s, when three in four Americans said they approved. Support only dipped below the 50% mark once, in 2009, but has improved in the 13 years since and now sits at a level last seen nearly 60 years ago.
About One in Six Americans Live in a Union Household
Sixteen percent of Americans live in a household where at least one resident is a union member. This includes U.S. adults who report that they themselves are a union member (6%), those who say someone else in their home is a member (7%), and those who say they and someone else in their household belong to unions (3%).
The net 16% union household figure is within the 14% to 21% range Gallup has recorded since 2001.
###Embeddable###
Gallup also polled union members and nonunion members June 13-23 in a separate online Gallup Panel survey about union membership.
Membership is highest among front-line and production workers, of whom one in five (20%) are union members.
About one in 10 workers in healthcare and social assistance (13%), white-collar positions (11%), and administrative and clerical roles (10%) are union members.
Workers in managerial roles (6%) are the least likely to be members of unions.
Two in Five Union Members Say Membership Is 'Extremely Important'
Among union members, two in five (40%) rate their membership as "extremely important," or as a 5 on a five-point scale, with another 28% rating it a 4. In contrast, just one in 10 rate it as "not important at all," a rating of 1 on the scale.
###Embeddable###
Union members were also asked which of various potential reasons for joining a union are most important to them. Their top answers are better pay and benefits (65%) and employee rights and representation (57%).
More than a third of union members cite job security (42%) and better pension and retirement benefits (34%) as reasons for joining a labor union. Meanwhile, about one in four list improving the work environment (25%) and fairness and equality at work (23%).
Few members select health and safety (9%) or unions having a positive effect on the country (5%) as reasons to join.
###Embeddable###
Most Nonunion Workers Disinterested in Unionizing
While many union members truly value their participation, those who are not members don't generally feel they are missing out.
A majority of nonunion workers in the U.S. (58%) say they are "not interested at all" in joining a union. About one in 10 say they are "extremely interested" (11%).
###Embeddable###
Engagement Higher Among Nonunion Workers, but Flight Risk Is Greater
Union members' attachment to their union does not carry over to their jobs. Rather, the data show that workers who are union members are less engaged at work (27%) than are nonunion members (33%). Gallup defines employee engagement as the involvement in and enthusiasm of employees in their work and workplace. The engagement gap between union and nonunion workers could be significant to employers because highly engaged employees tend to be substantially more productive, less likely to leave and safer at work than their less engaged counterparts, and they tend to have better personal wellbeing.
On the flip side, about one in four union members (24%) are actively disengaged at work, compared with 17% of nonunion workers. Actively disengaged employees are not just unhappy at work -- they tend to be resentful that their workplace needs aren't being met and often act out their unhappiness.
Union workers are less of a flight risk for employers, however; they are less likely to be actively looking for a new job (43%) than are nonunion workers (50%).
###Embeddable###
Bottom Line
The low unemployment rate that developed during the pandemic altered the balance of power between employers and employees, creating an environment fostering union membership that has resulted in the formation of unions at several high-profile companies. While already on an upswing, public approval of unions has only increased further during the pandemic and is now at a level not seen in nearly six decades.
Many union members greatly value their membership, with most naming benefits and employee rights as key reasons for joining. But for all the membership benefits they enjoy, this doesn't necessarily translate to employee engagement among unionized workers. It is not clear, however, whether lower engagement among unionized employees is a result of dissatisfaction they harbored before joining a union, or if joining a union foments tension between workers and their employers.
It is a challenging environment for employers -- and many are pushing back against unionization efforts despite unions' improved public image. While most nonunion workers are uninterested in joining a union, an increase in unionization efforts is still taking place, and employers of these unionized workers will need to find ways to improve their engagement.
To stay up to date with the latest Gallup News insights and updates,follow us on Twitter.
Learn more about how the Gallup Poll Social Series works.
Learn more about how the Gallup Panel works.
View complete question responses and trends (PDF download).
Tags
Who is online
278 visitors
Now we need to police companies' union busting techniques.
While you are enjoying your Labor day weekend in a few days, make sure to take a minute to THANK THE UNIONS.
Every Company that has Union deserves it and so do most other places.
Gee, that's swell. Don't overlook the fact that about half of unionized workers are employed by local, state, and Federal government. About 6 pct of the private sector labor force is unionized. But around a third of the government labor force is unionized. Altogether there are around 14 million workers who are union members (7 million in the private sector and 7 million in the public sector) in the United States.
Unions have become an anachronism because they're still trying to operate as if it's 1950. The nature of business (and employment) has changed dramatically since the mid-20th century. Unions simply are not going to be relevant in a globalized economy by trying to revive the 1950s. And there isn't any way to strengthen unions without addressing the problems associated with globalization.
If people want stronger unions then they'll need to think MAGA. Private sector unions are irrelevant in the globalized neo-liberal status quo .
I doubt the MAGA crowd has any use for unions. They prefer to benefit from unions while not contributing to them.
Work Union live better!
My father's factory had about 18 employees, and he was a "father-figure" for them - they were treated like family. He would always help them out when they needed help, even went to court to provide character evidence for them if they got into trouble. Although they never threatened to unionize, I recall my father saying that if they ever tried to unionize, he would lock the door of the factory and walk away from it.
Interestingly, one of my best clients, and a good friend besides, ran a big manufacturing company with many employees. In a way he was much like my father. He hired newly released prisoners who would normally have trouble finding a decent job, he hired the disabled, and he too was a kind of father figure, extremely lenient with his employees. About 20 years ago the employees discussed unionizing, and my client told them that if they did, he would sell the business to a huge conglomerate, and he would no longer be around to help them. They went ahead and unionized, and he went ahead and sold the business. I heard later on from one of his supervisory staff that they then realized what a huge mistake they had made.
I know that back then, and before then, because of the sweat shops and such disgusting employer actions unions may have been an absolute necessity, but more recently because of stringent labour laws, safety requirements, etc. and the fact that employees can sue for many causes, such as wrongful dismissal, etc. I wonder if unions are as important now as they were back then.
He is what I'd call a good man.
I'll bet he never forgot about his friends either.
You're more right than you could ever know.
If the majority of American workers were unionized this country would be a vastly better place.
Well, as I said, there is less need for unions today than there was many decades ago, but I'm also sure there are a lot of employers that make unions a necessity.
Borrowing the format of your comment....If the majority of Americans were better educated your country would be a vastly better place.
Every time employees try to unionize the corporations fight them tooth and nail.
We had unions provide good paying jobs for Americans. Then we established trade deals with countries who use the cheapest of labor and we lost many of those good paying jobs.
If the employers deserve it, more power to the employees to succeed, but if the employers don't deserve it, the employees are taking a chance that their situation will become worse. As I pointed out above, I've seen that happen.
Don't blame those who do the selling, blame those who do the buying, and who do you think THEY are? Those who want to have their cake and eat it too end up paying more for the cake, Vic.
I blame those who make the trade deals. Our people shouldn't be allowed to buy what was produced by cheaper labor than our own.
That was the start of many problems
Didn't Nixon open trade relations with China in order to provide American manufacturers with a billion new potential consumers? The benefit of trade doesn't only go in one direction, Vic.
That he did.
Then it was Donald Trump who demanded that only goods manufactured via a living wage be part of any trade.