Technical information: (202) 606-6378 USDL 97-27
For release: 10:00 A.M. EST
Media contact: 606-5902 Friday, January 31, 1997
UNION MEMBERS IN 1996
Union membership as a percent of wage and salary employment continued to
decline in 1996, the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics
reported today. Union members accounted for 14.5 percent of wage and
salary employment in 1996, down from 14.9 percent in 1995. In 1983, the
first year for which comparable data are available, union members made up
20.1 percent of wage and salary workers.
In 1996, as wage and salary employment continued to rise, the number who
were members of unions totaled 16.3 million, little changed from the prior
year. Nearly three-fifths of union members (9.4 million) were in private
industry, where they constituted 10.2 percent of wage and salary
employment. There were 6.9 million union members in government (federal,
state, and local), where they accounted for 37.7 percent of wage and salary
employment.
Membership by industry and occupation
Among private industry groups, transportation and public utilities had
the highest proportion of workers who were union members (27 percent).
Other major groups with membership proportions above the private industry
average were construction (19 percent), manufacturing (17 percent), and
mining (14 percent). The remaining private industry groups had
unionization rates ranging from 2 to 6 percent. (See table 3.)
Precision production, craft, and repair occupations (including, for
example, mechanics, electricians, and other skilled trades workers) and
operators, fabricators, and laborers (including machine and vehicle
operators, assemblers, cleaners, and helpers) continued to have the highest
proportions of union members (23 percent each). In contrast, union
membership proportions were about 1 in 10 among technical and
administrative support occupations and 1 in 20 among farming, forestry, and
fishing workers. (See table 3.)
Demographic characteristics of union members
Union membership was higher among men (17 percent) than women (12
percent) and higher among blacks (19 percent) than either whites (14
percent) or Hispanics (13 percent). Within these major groups, black men
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continued to have the highest union membership rate (22 percent), while
white women had the lowest rate (11 percent). Workers ages 35 to 64 had
higher unionization rates than either younger or older workers. Full-time
workers were more than twice as likely as part timers to be union members.
(See table 1.)
Union representation of non-members
In 1996, 1.9 million wage and salary workers were represented at their
work place by a union, although they were not union members themselves. A
little more than half worked in government.
Earnings
Among full-time wage and salary workers, union members had median usual
weekly earnings of $615 in 1996, compared with a median of $462 for workers
not represented by unions. (See tables 2 and 4.) This difference reflects
a variety of influences in addition to coverage by a collective bargaining
agreement, including variations in the distribution of union members and
nonunion employees by gender, occupation, industry, firm size, or
geographic region. (For a discussion of the problem of differentiating
between the influence of unionization status and other worker
characteristics on employee earnings, see Kay E. Anderson, Philip M. Doyle,
and Albert E. Schwenk, "Measuring union-nonunion earnings differences,"
Monthly Labor Review, June 1990, pp. 26-38.) The disparities in union-
nonunion earnings were greater for women than for men and for Hispanics and
blacks than for whites.
Technical Note
The union membership and earnings estimates presented in this release
are obtained from the Current Population Survey (CPS). The CPS is a
monthly sample survey of about 50,000 households, conducted by the Bureau
of the Census for the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The union membership
data are gathered quarterly through a quarter sample of the CPS. The CPS
provides estimates of the number of wage and salary employees who are union
members and those who are represented by a union at their work place,
regardless of whether they are union members. Union members include
employees belonging to traditional labor unions or to employee associations
similar to labor unions. The membership estimates exclude workers who are
self-employed, not in the labor force, or unemployed.
Information in this release will be made available to sensory
impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-606-7828, TDD phone:
202-606-5897, TDD message referral phone number: 1-800-326-2577.
Definitions
The principal definitions used in this release are described briefly
below.
Wage and salary employees. Employees in both the private and public
sectors who receive wages, salaries, commissions, tips, payment in kind, or
piece rates. Self-employed persons whose businesses are incorporated are
not counted as wage and salary workers for the purposes of the union
membership data.
Full-time workers. Workers who usually work 35 hours or more per week.
Part-time workers. Workers who usually work fewer than 35 hours per
week.
Hispanic origin. Refers to persons who are of Mexican, Puerto Rican,
Cuban, Central or South American, or of other Hispanic origin or descent.
Persons of Hispanic origin may be of any race; hence, they are included in
the numbers for the white and black population groups.
Reliability
Because the CPS estimates of union membership are based in part on a
scientifically selected probability sample, rather than a census of the
entire population, they may differ from the results obtained from a census.
The sample used was one of many possible samples, each of which could have
produced different estimates. The variation in the sample estimates across
all possible samples that could have been drawn is measured by the standard
error which for the CPS is estimated using generalized variance function
methodology. The standard error may be used to calculate a "confidence
interval" around a sample estimate.
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The 90-percent confidence interval is the interval centered at the
sample estimate that includes all values within 1.6 times the estimate's
standard error. If many different samples were selected to estimate the
population value (e.g., union membership), the 90-percent confidence
interval would include the true population value approximately 90 percent
of the time.
For example, the estimate of 16,269,000 employed union members in 1996
has an estimated standard error of 146,645. Hence, we are 90-percent
confident that the interval between 16,034,368 and 16,503,632 (or
16,269,000 + 1.6 X 146,645) includes the true population value for union
membership.
The data also are subject to nonsampling error. For example,
information on job-related characteristics of the worker, such as industry,
occupation, union membership, and earnings, are sometimes reported by a
household member other than the worker. Consequently, such data may
reflect reporting error by the respondent. Moreover, in some cases,
respondents might erroneously report "take home" pay rather than gross
earnings, or may round up or down from actual earnings.
For a general discussion of the quality of employment data from the CPS,
see the Explanatory Notes and Estimates of Error section of any issue of
Employment and Earnings, published monthly by the Bureau of Labor
Statistics.
Table 1. Union affiliation of employed wage and salary workers by selected characteristics
(Numbers in thousands)
1995 1996
Members of Represented Members of Represented
unions(1) by unions(2) unions(1) by unions(2)
Characteristic Total Total
em- em-
ployed Percent Percent ployed Percent Percent
Total of Total of Total of Total of
em- em- em- em-
ployed ployed ployed ployed
SEX AND AGE
Total, 16 years and over................... 110,038 16,360 14.9 18,346 16.7 111,960 16,269 14.5 18,158 16.2
16 to 24 years............................ 18,205 1,022 5.6 1,199 6.6 18,106 991 5.5 1,146 6.3
25 years and over......................... 91,833 15,337 16.7 17,148 18.7 93,854 15,278 16.3 17,012 18.1
25 to 34 years........................... 29,761 3,596 12.1 4,090 13.7 29,564 3,536 12.0 3,994 13.5
35 to 44 years........................... 29,800 5,254 17.6 5,883 19.7 30,619 5,132 16.8 5,716 18.7
45 to 54 years........................... 20,623 4,483 21.7 4,964 24.1 21,641 4,626 21.4 5,106 23.6
55 to 64 years........................... 9,202 1,801 19.6 1,980 21.5 9,527 1,795 18.8 1,984 20.8
65 years and over........................ 2,448 203 8.3 231 9.4 2,503 189 7.5 211 8.4
Men, 16 years and over.................... 57,669 9,929 17.2 10,868 18.8 58,473 9,859 16.9 10,761 18.4
16 to 24 years........................... 9,531 640 6.7 721 7.6 9,392 627 6.7 709 7.5
25 years and over........................ 48,137 9,289 19.3 10,146 21.1 49,080 9,232 18.8 10,052 20.5
25 to 34 years.......................... 16,094 2,220 13.8 2,469 15.3 15,930 2,205 13.8 2,434 15.3
35 to 44 years.......................... 15,505 3,169 20.4 3,460 22.3 15,921 3,100 19.5 3,368 21.2
45 to 54 years.......................... 10,521 2,679 25.5 2,885 27.4 10,936 2,739 25.0 2,960 27.1
55 to 64 years.......................... 4,779 1,117 23.4 1,209 25.3 4,978 1,079 21.7 1,166 23.4
65 years and over....................... 1,238 105 8.5 123 9.9 1,315 109 8.3 124 9.5
Women, 16 years and over.................. 52,369 6,430 12.3 7,479 14.3 53,488 6,410 12.0 7,397 13.8
16 to 24 years........................... 8,673 382 4.4 478 5.5 8,714 364 4.2 437 5.0
25 years and over........................ 43,696 6,048 13.8 7,001 16.0 44,773 6,046 13.5 6,960 15.5
25 to 34 years.......................... 13,667 1,377 10.1 1,621 11.9 13,634 1,331 9.8 1,560 11.4
35 to 44 years.......................... 14,295 2,085 14.6 2,423 16.9 14,698 2,032 13.8 2,349 16.0
45 to 54 years.......................... 10,101 1,804 17.9 2,078 20.6 10,705 1,887 17.6 2,146 20.0
55 to 64 years.......................... 4,423 685 15.5 771 17.4 4,549 716 15.7 818 18.0
65 years and over....................... 1,210 98 8.1 108 8.9 1,187 80 6.7 87 7.3
RACE, HISPANIC ORIGIN, AND SEX
White, 16 years and over.................. 92,760 13,149 14.2 14,747 15.9 94,306 13,232 14.0 14,761 15.7
Men..................................... 49,162 8,178 16.6 8,960 18.2 49,961 8,216 16.4 8,961 17.9
Women................................... 43,598 4,971 11.4 5,787 13.3 44,345 5,016 11.3 5,800 13.1
Black, 16 years and over.................. 12,644 2,519 19.9 2,819 22.3 12,909 2,441 18.9 2,733 21.2
Men..................................... 6,005 1,353 22.5 1,460 24.3 6,031 1,303 21.6 1,428 23.7
Women................................... 6,639 1,167 17.6 1,358 20.5 6,878 1,138 16.5 1,305 19.0
Hispanic origin, 16 years and over........ 10,401 1,357 13.0 1,535 14.8 10,800 1,394 12.9 1,573 14.6
Men..................................... 6,223 871 14.0 969 15.6 6,455 881 13.7 971 15.0
Women................................... 4,178 486 11.6 565 13.5 4,345 513 11.8 602 13.9
FULL- OR PART-TIME STATUS(3)
Full-time workers......................... 89,282 14,790 16.6 16,531 18.5 90,918 14,762 16.2 16,429 18.1
Part-time workers......................... 20,550 1,537 7.5 1,781 8.7 20,810 1,477 7.1 1,697 8.2
1 Data refer to members of a labor union or an employee association similar to a union.
2 Data refer to members of a labor union or an employee association similar to a union as well as workers who report no
union affiliation but whose jobs are covered by a union or an employee association contract.
3 The distinction between full- and part-time workers is based on hours usually worked. Beginning in 1994, these data will
not sum to totals because full- or part-time status on the principal job is not identifiable for a small number of multiple
jobholders.
NOTE: Data refer to the sole or principal job of full- and part-time workers. Excluded are self-employed workers
whose businesses are incorporated although they technically qualify as wage and salary workers. Detail for the above race
and Hispanic-origin groups will not sum to totals because data for the "other races" group are not presented and Hispanics
are included in both the white and black population groups.
Table 2. Median weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by union affiliation and selected
characteristics
1995 1996
Characteristic Members Repre- Members Repre-
of sented Non- of sented Non-
Total unions- by union Total unions- by union
(1) unions- (1) unions-
(2) (2)
SEX AND AGE
Total, 16 years and over................... $479 $602 $598 $447 $490 $615 $610 $462
16 to 24 years............................ 292 375 373 287 298 371 362 294
25 years and over......................... 510 613 610 486 520 625 621 498
25 to 34 years........................... 451 542 534 433 463 554 548 447
35 to 44 years........................... 550 621 619 520 559 636 632 530
45 to 54 years........................... 582 665 663 536 594 687 686 552
55 to 64 years........................... 514 614 614 482 535 620 616 505
65 years and over........................ 389 509 506 362 384 510 510 367
Men, 16 years and over.................... 538 640 638 507 557 653 651 520
16 to 24 years........................... 303 388 388 298 307 375 369 303
25 years and over........................ 588 654 652 563 599 669 668 580
25 to 34 years.......................... 490 583 579 475 499 591 587 485
35 to 44 years.......................... 624 665 663 612 632 683 683 617
45 to 54 years.......................... 685 705 706 670 698 718 721 682
55 to 64 years.......................... 623 655 659 607 643 667 664 633
65 years and over....................... 441 615 619 400 477 589 593 424
Women, 16 years and over.................. 406 527 523 386 418 549 543 398
16 to 24 years........................... 275 349 345 272 284 358 339 280
25 years and over........................ 428 539 536 408 444 560 555 420
25 to 34 years.......................... 403 492 488 393 415 497 495 405
35 to 44 years.......................... 453 553 552 427 463 561 556 439
45 to 54 years.......................... 464 595 593 423 481 620 616 445
55 to 64 years.......................... 403 501 501 383 420 524 523 395
65 years and over....................... 353 435 425 333 334 417 413 321
RACE, HISPANIC ORIGIN, AND SEX
White, 16 years and over.................. 494 621 616 466 506 635 630 480
Men..................................... 566 661 658 526 580 675 673 544
Women................................... 415 551 546 395 428 572 564 408
Black, 16 years and over.................. 383 503 500 348 387 507 502 356
Men..................................... 411 526 526 374 412 526 522 380
Women................................... 355 473 468 325 362 485 480 336
Hispanic origin, 16 years and over........ 329 499 493 311 339 484 482 319
Men..................................... 350 528 523 321 356 511 511 330
Women................................... 305 423 419 291 316 436 433 305
1 Data refer to members of a labor union or an employee association similar to a union.
2 Data refer to members of a labor union or an employee association similar to a union as well as workers
who report no union affiliation but whose jobs are covered by a union or an employee association contract.
NOTE: Data refer to the sole or principal job of full-time workers. Excluded are self-employed
workers whose businesses are incorporated although they technically qualify as wage and salary workers.
Detail for the above race and Hispanic-origin groups will not sum to totals because data for the "other
races" group are not presented and Hispanics are included in both the white and black population groups.
Table 3. Union affiliation of employed wage and salary workers by occupation and industry
(Numbers in thousands)
1995 1996
Members of Represented Members of Represented
unions(1) by unions(2) unions(1) by unions(2)
Occupation and industry Total Total
em- em-
ployed Percent Percent ployed Percent Percent
Total of Total of Total of Total of
em- em- em- em-
ployed ployed ployed ployed
OCCUPATION
Managerial and professional specialty....... 29,827 4,116 13.8 4,909 16.5 30,942 4,196 13.6 4,977 16.1
Executive, administrative, and managerial. 13,840 804 5.8 1,017 7.4 14,263 785 5.5 1,005 7.0
Professional specialty.................... 15,987 3,312 20.7 3,892 24.3 16,679 3,410 20.4 3,972 23.8
Technical, sales, and administrative support 33,842 3,364 9.9 3,883 11.5 34,187 3,231 9.5 3,742 10.9
Technicians and related support........... 3,795 448 11.8 526 13.9 3,828 409 10.7 492 12.8
Sales occupations......................... 12,427 561 4.5 651 5.2 12,658 541 4.3 616 4.9
Administrative support, including clerical 17,620 2,355 13.4 2,706 15.4 17,701 2,281 12.9 2,634 14.9
Service occupations......................... 15,648 2,112 13.5 2,356 15.1 15,897 2,103 13.2 2,331 14.7
Protective service........................ 2,236 900 40.2 978 43.7 2,154 852 39.5 909 42.2
Service, except protective service........ 13,412 1,213 9.0 1,378 10.3 13,743 1,251 9.1 1,421 10.3
Precision production, craft, and repair..... 11,563 2,692 23.3 2,866 24.8 11,615 2,648 22.8 2,804 24.1
Operators, fabricators, and laborers........ 17,304 3,983 23.0 4,229 24.4 17,428 4,000 23.0 4,201 24.1
Machine operators, assemblers, and
inspectors............................... 7,639 1,780 23.3 1,892 24.8 7,584 1,752 23.1 1,838 24.2
Transportation and material moving
occupations.............................. 4,736 1,224 25.9 1,294 27.3 4,862 1,243 25.6 1,313 27.0
Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and
laborers................................. 4,929 978 19.9 1,044 21.2 4,981 1,005 20.2 1,050 21.1
Farming, forestry, and fishing.............. 1,855 91 4.9 104 5.6 1,892 92 4.9 104 5.5
INDUSTRY
Agricultural wage and salary workers........ 1,575 33 2.1 43 2.7 1,710 32 1.9 37 2.2
Private nonagricultural wage and salary
workers.................................... 90,121 9,400 10.4 10,318 11.4 92,059 9,385 10.2 10,293 11.2
Mining.................................... 609 84 13.8 88 14.4 538 76 14.1 81 15.0
Construction.............................. 5,135 908 17.7 963 18.8 5,387 994 18.5 1,033 19.2
Manufacturing............................. 19,520 3,440 17.6 3,657 18.7 19,653 3,387 17.2 3,603 18.3
Durable goods........................... 11,424 2,153 18.8 2,286 20.0 11,642 2,157 18.5 2,282 19.6
Nondurable goods........................ 8,096 1,286 15.9 1,371 16.9 8,011 1,230 15.4 1,320 16.5
Transportation and public utilities....... 6,573 1,792 27.3 1,911 29.1 6,623 1,757 26.5 1,873 28.3
Transportation.......................... 3,957 1,065 26.9 1,118 28.3 4,006 1,080 27.0 1,136 28.4
Communications and public utilities..... 2,616 726 27.8 793 30.3 2,617 677 25.9 737 28.2
Wholesale and retail trade................ 23,028 1,401 6.1 1,550 6.7 23,638 1,331 5.6 1,471 6.2
Wholesale trade......................... 4,251 283 6.6 319 7.5 4,357 271 6.2 292 6.7
Retail trade............................ 18,777 1,118 6.0 1,231 6.6 19,280 1,059 5.5 1,179 6.1
Finance, insurance, and real estate....... 6,745 139 2.1 173 2.6 6,863 168 2.4 210 3.1
Services.................................. 28,511 1,636 5.7 1,976 6.9 29,357 1,672 5.7 2,024 6.9
Government workers.......................... 18,342 6,926 37.8 7,985 43.5 18,191 6,852 37.7 7,827 43.0
1 Data refer to members of a labor union or an employee association similar to a union.
2 Data refer to members of a labor union or an employee association similar to a union as well as workers who report no
union affiliation but whose jobs are covered by a union or an employee association contract.
NOTE: Data refer to the sole or principal job of full- and part-time workers. Excluded are self-employed workers
whose businesses are incorporated although they technically qualify as wage and salary workers.
Table 4. Median weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by union affiliation, occupation, and
industry
1995 1996
Occupation and industry Members Repre- Members Repre-
of sented Non- of sented Non-
Total unions- by union Total unions- by union
(1) unions- (1) unions-
(2) (2)
OCCUPATION
Managerial and professional specialty....... $703 $745 $737 $694 $718 $758 $749 $708
Executive, administrative, and managerial. 684 727 722 681 699 742 745 694
Professional specialty.................... 718 750 741 707 730 762 750 721
Technical, sales, and administrative support 426 522 516 414 441 532 524 427
Technicians and related support........... 558 629 619 542 573 664 661 554
Sales occupations......................... 454 457 466 453 474 451 459 475
Administrative support, including clerical 399 517 510 383 405 524 516 389
Service occupations......................... 299 484 477 275 305 490 484 282
Protective service........................ 528 678 676 399 538 693 686 413
Service, except protective service........ 274 366 359 264 283 379 379 271
Precision production, craft, and repair..... 519 688 684 478 540 703 698 494
Operators, fabricators, and laborers........ 380 524 519 338 391 528 522 353
Machine operators, assemblers, and
inspectors............................... 368 509 504 328 380 512 508 345
Transportation and material moving
occupations.............................. 476 612 606 420 476 610 601 425
Handlers, equipment cleaners, helpers, and
laborers................................. 319 480 473 297 330 481 477 308
Farming, forestry, and fishing.............. 287 404 404 280 294 439 423 288
INDUSTRY
Agricultural wage and salary workers........ 291 (3) (3) 289 306 (3) (3) 305
Private nonagricultural wage and salary
workers.................................... 462 $573 $567 443 475 $584 $579 458
Mining.................................... 667 684 682 663 693 698 699 690
Construction.............................. 487 741 730 442 504 748 742 464
Manufacturing............................. 494 548 544 479 507 560 558 494
Durable goods........................... 517 576 573 503 533 588 587 517
Nondurable goods........................ 454 506 504 438 466 510 507 453
Transportation and public utilities....... 590 676 673 545 596 680 676 555
Transportation.......................... 523 659 651 488 527 656 649 491
Communications and public utilities..... 675 690 690 661 693 707 705 684
Wholesale and retail trade................ 370 466 454 363 380 450 444 375
Wholesale trade......................... 492 541 524 489 503 566 551 500
Retail trade............................ 333 425 419 325 343 408 408 338
Finance, insurance, and real estate....... 501 477 490 502 521 534 533 520
Services.................................. 444 489 491 440 456 501 498 451
Government workers.......................... 575 638 633 500 592 657 651 519
1 Data refer to members of a labor union or an employee association similar to a union.
2 Data refer to members of a labor union or an employee association similar to a union as well as workers
who report no union affiliation but whose jobs are covered by a union or an employee association contract.
3 Data not shown where base is less than 50,000.
NOTE: Data refer to the sole or principal job of full-time workers. Excluded are self-employed
workers whose businesses are incorporated although they technically qualify as wage and salary workers.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
Contact: (cpsinfo@bls.gov) Division of Labor Force Statistics-BLS
Last revised: January 31, 1997
URL: http://www.bls.census.gov/cps/pub/union_96.htm
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