Table 2: Union membership and union coverage, 11-months ending November, 2019 to 2024
By broad private sector industry
2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 Change
2024-2023 2024-2019
Coverage (%)
Agriculture and related industries 2.6% 2.1% 3.1% 4.2% 2.6% 1.3% −1.3 −1.3
Mining 4.9% 6.6% 5.8% 8.0% 4.7% 8.0% 3.4 3.1
Construction 13.6% 13.6% 13.7% 12.2% 11.4% 11.2% −0.3 −2.5
Manufacturing 9.6% 9.4% 8.3% 8.5% 9.1% 8.6% −0.5 −0.9
Durable goods manufacturing 9.7% 9.5% 8.1% 8.7% 9.1% 8.6% −0.5 −1.1
Nondurable goods manufacturing 9.3% 9.2% 8.6% 8.1% 9.3% 8.8% −0.5 −0.6
Wholesale and retail trade 4.8% 5.0% 4.8% 4.8% 4.5% 4.8% 0.3 0.0
Wholesale trade 5.2% 4.8% 4.5% 3.8% 5.2% 5.7% 0.5 0.5
Retail trade 4.7% 5.1% 4.9% 5.0% 4.4% 4.7% 0.3 −0.1
Transportation and utilities 18.9% 18.9% 16.8% 16.0% 17.6% 17.7% 0.1 −1.3
Transportation and warehousing 18.0% 18.2% 16.2% 15.3% 16.9% 17.2% 0.3 −0.7
Utilities 24.1% 22.3% 20.8% 20.3% 21.7% 20.2% −1.5 −3.9
Information 11.0% 10.1% 11.0% 9.3% 8.0% 7.9% −0.1 −3.1
Publishing industries (except internet) 3.4% 2.8% 6.6% 5.3% 3.9% 3.4% −0.5 0.0
Motion picture and sound recording industries 14.1% 13.9% 18.7% 18.0% 13.0% 10.6% −2.4 −3.6
Broadcasting (except internet) 12.4% 9.3% 10.5% 11.5% 10.4% 10.1% −0.4 −2.3
Telecommunications 14.7% 14.8% 12.7% 9.8% 10.3% 11.2% 0.9 −3.5
Internet publishing and broadcasting 3.3% 2.8% 0.6% 2.5% 2.3% 4.0% 1.7 0.7
Internet service providers and data processing services 1.4% 3.5% 6.2% 1.8% 0.0% 1.3% 1.3 −0.1
Other information services 5.6% 8.8% 8.5% 1.0% 10.1% 10.4% 0.2 4.8
Financial activities 2.5% 2.7% 3.1% 2.5% 2.2% 1.9% −0.4 −0.7
Finance 1.7% 2.0% 1.8% 2.0% 1.7% 1.4% −0.3 −0.3
Insurance 1.9% 2.3% 2.2% 1.8% 2.1% 1.4% −0.7 −0.5
Real estate 4.8% 4.5% 7.0% 4.4% 3.3% 3.3% 0.0 −1.5
Rental and leasing services 4.4% 4.2% 5.7% 3.4% 4.1% 4.4% 0.2 0.0
Professional and business services 2.9% 2.9% 3.0% 2.8% 3.0% 2.8% −0.2 −0.1
Management, administrative, and waste services 4.4% 4.8% 5.2% 5.0% 5.1% 4.5% −0.6 0.1
Professional and technical services 2.1% 2.0% 1.9% 1.8% 2.1% 1.9% −0.2 −0.2
Educational and health services 9.2% 9.8% 9.3% 9.1% 9.2% 9.4% 0.2 0.2
Educational services 13.9% 15.6% 15.0% 14.4% 14.5% 15.4% 0.9 1.5
Health care and social assistance 8.0% 8.3% 7.8% 7.7% 7.7% 7.8% 0.1 −0.2
Leisure and hospitality 3.5% 2.7% 2.7% 3.4% 3.3% 3.4% 0.1 −0.2
Arts, entertainment, and recreation 7.3% 5.8% 5.6% 7.7% 7.0% 6.7% −0.3 −0.6
Accommodation 7.1% 6.4% 6.6% 7.6% 7.6% 8.7% 1.0 1.6
Food services and drinking places 2.0% 1.5% 1.6% 1.7% 1.6% 1.7% 0.2 −0.2
Other services 3.2% 2.9% 3.7% 3.5% 3.6% 3.2% −0.3 0.0
Other services, except private households 3.5% 3.3% 3.8% 3.7% 3.9% 3.4% −0.5 −0.2
Private households 0.9% 0.5% 2.8% 1.4% 1.1% 1.8% 0.6 0.8
Membership (%)
Agriculture and related industries 1.6% 1.8% 2.8% 3.8% 2.2% 1.2% −0.9 −0.4
Mining 4.3% 5.6% 5.7% 6.8% 4.0% 7.4% 3.3 3.1
Construction 12.7% 12.9% 12.6% 11.5% 10.7% 10.3% −0.4 −2.4
Manufacturing 8.7% 8.6% 7.5% 7.7% 8.0% 7.8% −0.1 −0.8
Durable goods manufacturing 8.9% 8.8% 7.3% 7.8% 8.0% 7.8% −0.2 −1.0
Nondurable goods manufacturing 8.3% 8.4% 7.9% 7.5% 8.0% 7.8% −0.1 −0.5
Wholesale and retail trade 4.1% 4.5% 4.2% 4.2% 3.9% 4.2% 0.3 0.0
Wholesale trade 4.7% 4.3% 3.7% 3.3% 4.8% 5.0% 0.2 0.3
Retail trade 4.0% 4.6% 4.3% 4.4% 3.7% 4.0% 0.3 0.0
Transportation and utilities 17.5% 17.6% 15.4% 15.0% 16.6% 16.5% −0.2 −1.0
Transportation and warehousing 16.3% 17.0% 14.7% 14.4% 15.9% 16.0% 0.1 −0.3
Utilities 23.4% 20.8% 19.4% 19.5% 20.8% 18.9% −1.9 −4.5
Information 10.3% 9.1% 9.9% 8.5% 7.6% 6.8% −0.8 −3.5
Publishing industries (except internet) 3.0% 2.7% 5.0% 3.9% 3.4% 3.3% −0.1 0.3
Motion picture and sound recording industries 13.0% 13.3% 17.8% 17.5% 12.5% 8.6% −3.9 −4.4
Broadcasting (except internet) 11.7% 8.4% 8.8% 11.4% 10.1% 9.0% −1.1 −2.7
Telecommunications 13.8% 13.3% 11.6% 8.8% 9.7% 9.5% −0.2 −4.3
Internet publishing and broadcasting 3.3% 2.0% 0.6% 1.8% 2.3% 3.2% 0.9 −0.1
Internet service providers and data processing services 1.4% 1.6% 4.9% 1.8% 0.0% 1.3% 1.3 −0.1
Other information services 4.9% 8.8% 8.5% 0.4% 10.1% 9.6% −0.6 4.7
Financial activities 2.0% 1.8% 2.4% 1.8% 1.7% 1.3% −0.4 −0.7
Finance 1.1% 1.1% 1.2% 1.4% 1.3% 0.7% −0.6 −0.4
Insurance 1.5% 1.6% 1.6% 1.1% 1.4% 1.2% −0.2 −0.3
Real estate 4.1% 3.5% 5.7% 3.6% 2.6% 2.6% 0.0 −1.5
Rental and leasing services 3.9% 3.4% 4.8% 2.8% 4.1% 3.8% −0.4 −0.2
Professional and business services 2.1% 2.1% 2.2% 2.3% 2.3% 2.1% −0.2 0.0
Management, administrative, and waste services 3.5% 3.9% 4.3% 4.3% 4.2% 3.8% −0.4 0.3
Professional and technical services 1.4% 1.3% 1.2% 1.3% 1.3% 1.2% −0.2 −0.2
Educational and health services 8.0% 8.5% 8.0% 7.8% 8.0% 8.2% 0.2 0.2
Educational services 12.2% 13.6% 12.9% 12.4% 12.7% 13.3% 0.6 1.1
Health care and social assistance 6.9% 7.2% 6.7% 6.6% 6.8% 6.9% 0.1 0.0
Leisure and hospitality 3.0% 2.2% 2.3% 2.9% 2.8% 2.9% 0.1 −0.1
Arts, entertainment, and recreation 6.6% 4.7% 4.8% 6.5% 5.8% 5.8% 0.1 −0.8
Accommodation 6.5% 5.8% 6.1% 7.2% 7.1% 7.8% 0.7 1.3
Food services and drinking places 1.4% 1.1% 1.3% 1.3% 1.3% 1.5% 0.2 0.0
Other services 2.7% 2.4% 3.1% 3.0% 3.0% 2.8% −0.2 0.0
Other services, except private households 3.0% 2.7% 3.2% 3.3% 3.3% 3.0% −0.3 −0.1
Private households 0.9% 0.5% 2.7% 0.5% 1.1% 1.3% 0.1 0.3
Coverage
Agriculture and related industries 35,000 26,000 42,000 53,000 33,000 17,000 −16,000 −18,000
Mining 35,000 44,000 33,000 44,000 27,000 42,000 15,000 7,000
Construction 1,136,000 1,057,000 1,116,000 1,059,000 1,021,000 991,000 −30,000 −145,000
Manufacturing 1,446,000 1,303,000 1,166,000 1,244,000 1,364,000 1,240,000 −124,000 −206,000
Durable goods manufacturing 926,000 829,000 722,000 815,000 870,000 789,000 −82,000 −137,000
Nondurable goods manufacturing 520,000 474,000 444,000 430,000 493,000 451,000 −42,000 −69,000
Wholesale and retail trade 875,000 865,000 875,000 863,000 811,000 866,000 55,000 −9,000
Wholesale trade 167,000 149,000 140,000 111,000 150,000 170,000 20,000 3,000
Retail trade 709,000 716,000 734,000 752,000 661,000 697,000 36,000 −12,000
Transportation and utilities 1,270,000 1,213,000 1,171,000 1,200,000 1,343,000 1,341,000 −2,000 71,000
Transportation and warehousing 1,011,000 978,000 965,000 1,005,000 1,100,000 1,102,000 2,000 91,000
Utilities 259,000 235,000 206,000 194,000 243,000 240,000 −4,000 −20,000
Information 259,000 218,000 253,000 217,000 206,000 185,000 −21,000 −74,000
Publishing industries (except internet) 12,000 9,000 21,000 21,000 22,000 17,000 −5,000 5,000
Motion picture and sound recording industries 56,000 41,000 69,000 76,000 49,000 38,000 −11,000 −18,000
Broadcasting (except internet) 60,000 37,000 39,000 36,000 27,000 22,000 −5,000 −38,000
Telecommunications 121,000 116,000 107,000 76,000 92,000 87,000 −5,000 −34,000
Internet publishing and broadcasting 5,000 5,000 1,000 6,000 5,000 8,000 3,000 3,000
Internet service providers and data processing services 1,000 3,000 7,000 2,000 0 2,000 2,000 1,000
Other information services 4,000 6,000 8,000 1,000 9,000 10,000 1,000 6,000
Financial activities 236,000 242,000 285,000 228,000 208,000 171,000 −37,000 −65,000
Finance 73,000 88,000 78,000 88,000 76,000 63,000 −13,000 −10,000
Insurance 50,000 58,000 56,000 46,000 54,000 37,000 −17,000 −14,000
Real estate 98,000 83,000 134,000 84,000 63,000 57,000 −6,000 −40,000
Rental and leasing services 15,000 12,000 16,000 10,000 15,000 14,000 −2,000 −2,000
Professional and business services 458,000 429,000 454,000 466,000 513,000 484,000 −29,000 26,000
Management, administrative, and waste services 237,000 227,000 252,000 268,000 279,000 270,000 −9,000 33,000
Professional and technical services 221,000 202,000 201,000 198,000 235,000 214,000 −20,000 −7,000
Educational and health services 2,175,000 2,192,000 2,117,000 2,147,000 2,242,000 2,349,000 107,000 173,000
Educational services 685,000 708,000 700,000 704,000 760,000 801,000 42,000 116,000
Health care and social assistance 1,490,000 1,483,000 1,417,000 1,443,000 1,482,000 1,547,000 65,000 57,000
Leisure and hospitality 467,000 276,000 302,000 416,000 416,000 420,000 3,000 −47,000
Arts, entertainment, and recreation 184,000 106,000 111,000 179,000 178,000 168,000 −9,000 −16,000
Accommodation 103,000 59,000 61,000 89,000 100,000 99,000 −1,000 −4,000
Food services and drinking places 180,000 111,000 130,000 149,000 138,000 152,000 14,000 −27,000
Other services 196,000 158,000 207,000 205,000 210,000 190,000 −20,000 −7,000
Other services, except private households 189,000 155,000 189,000 196,000 202,000 179,000 −24,000 −10,000
Private households 8,000 4,000 18,000 9,000 7,000 11,000 4,000 4,000
Membership
Agriculture and related industries 22,000 23,000 38,000 48,000 27,000 16,000 −11,000 −6,000
Mining 30,000 37,000 32,000 37,000 23,000 38,000 15,000 8,000
Construction 1,059,000 1,002,000 1,025,000 1,000,000 957,000 913,000 −44,000 −146,000
Manufacturing 1,309,000 1,196,000 1,055,000 1,128,000 1,192,000 1,126,000 −66,000 −183,000
Durable goods manufacturing 845,000 765,000 649,000 729,000 768,000 721,000 −47,000 −124,000
Nondurable goods manufacturing 464,000 431,000 405,000 399,000 424,000 404,000 −20,000 −60,000
Wholesale and retail trade 752,000 780,000 766,000 747,000 695,000 752,000 57,000 0
Wholesale trade 150,000 134,000 115,000 95,000 138,000 148,000 10,000 −2,000
Retail trade 602,000 645,000 650,000 652,000 557,000 604,000 47,000 2,000
Transportation and utilities 1,171,000 1,134,000 1,070,000 1,128,000 1,269,000 1,249,000 −20,000 78,000
Transportation and warehousing 919,000 915,000 878,000 942,000 1,035,000 1,025,000 −10,000 105,000
Utilities 252,000 219,000 192,000 186,000 234,000 225,000 −9,000 −27,000
Information 242,000 197,000 227,000 199,000 195,000 159,000 −36,000 −83,000
Publishing industries (except internet) 11,000 9,000 16,000 15,000 19,000 17,000 −3,000 6,000
Motion picture and sound recording industries 52,000 39,000 66,000 74,000 47,000 31,000 −17,000 −21,000
Broadcasting (except internet) 56,000 33,000 33,000 35,000 27,000 20,000 −7,000 −37,000
Telecommunications 114,000 104,000 98,000 68,000 87,000 74,000 −14,000 −40,000
Internet publishing and broadcasting 5,000 4,000 1,000 4,000 5,000 7,000 2,000 2,000
Internet service providers and data processing services 1,000 1,000 5,000 2,000 0 2,000 2,000 1,000
Other information services 4,000 6,000 8,000 0 9,000 9,000 0 6,000
Financial activities 184,000 165,000 215,000 169,000 156,000 119,000 −37,000 −65,000
Finance 48,000 51,000 53,000 63,000 56,000 32,000 −24,000 −16,000
Insurance 38,000 40,000 40,000 29,000 36,000 30,000 −6,000 −8,000
Real estate 84,000 65,000 108,000 69,000 49,000 45,000 −4,000 −39,000
Rental and leasing services 13,000 10,000 13,000 8,000 15,000 12,000 −3,000 −2,000
Professional and business services 333,000 317,000 338,000 374,000 385,000 358,000 −27,000 25,000
Management, administrative, and waste services 188,000 187,000 211,000 231,000 232,000 225,000 −7,000 37,000
Professional and technical services 144,000 130,000 127,000 143,000 153,000 133,000 −20,000 −12,000
Educational and health services 1,883,000 1,895,000 1,828,000 1,847,000 1,963,000 2,054,000 91,000 171,000
Educational services 601,000 617,000 603,000 604,000 661,000 690,000 29,000 89,000
Health care and social assistance 1,282,000 1,278,000 1,225,000 1,243,000 1,302,000 1,364,000 62,000 82,000
Leisure and hospitality 391,000 220,000 255,000 351,000 354,000 365,000 11,000 −26,000
Arts, entertainment, and recreation 165,000 85,000 95,000 151,000 146,000 146,000 0 −19,000
Accommodation 94,000 53,000 57,000 84,000 93,000 89,000 −4,000 −5,000
Food services and drinking places 132,000 82,000 103,000 116,000 115,000 130,000 15,000 −1,000
Other services 169,000 129,000 175,000 178,000 179,000 165,000 −14,000 −4,000
Other services, except private households 161,000 126,000 158,000 174,000 172,000 157,000 −15,000 −4,000
Private households 8,000 3,000 17,000 4,000 7,000 8,000 1,000 0
Total employment
Agriculture and related industries 1,340,000 1,278,000 1,339,000 1,255,000 1,268,000 1,283,000 15,000 −57,000
Mining 707,000 662,000 558,000 545,000 573,000 520,000 −53,000 −188,000
Construction 8,336,000 7,792,000 8,126,000 8,667,000 8,930,000 8,868,000 −62,000 532,000
Manufacturing 15,101,000 13,880,000 14,055,000 14,646,000 14,928,000 14,353,000 −575,000 −747,000
Durable goods manufacturing 9,526,000 8,713,000 8,919,000 9,320,000 9,607,000 9,197,000 −410,000 −329,000
Nondurable goods manufacturing 5,575,000 5,167,000 5,136,000 5,326,000 5,321,000 5,156,000 −165,000 −418,000
Wholesale and retail trade 18,134,000 17,262,000 18,117,000 17,885,000 17,937,000 17,960,000 23,000 −174,000
Wholesale trade 3,200,000 3,097,000 3,143,000 2,902,000 2,900,000 2,978,000 78,000 −222,000
Retail trade 14,933,000 14,165,000 14,974,000 14,983,000 15,037,000 14,982,000 −55,000 49,000
Transportation and utilities 6,706,000 6,426,000 6,958,000 7,507,000 7,629,000 7,590,000 −39,000 884,000
Transportation and warehousing 5,630,000 5,375,000 5,967,000 6,551,000 6,505,000 6,402,000 −103,000 772,000
Utilities 1,076,000 1,051,000 990,000 956,000 1,124,000 1,188,000 64,000 112,000
Information 2,363,000 2,162,000 2,297,000 2,336,000 2,566,000 2,342,000 −224,000 −21,000
Publishing industries (except internet) 362,000 332,000 324,000 390,000 570,000 498,000 −72,000 136,000
Motion picture and sound recording industries 398,000 295,000 367,000 422,000 379,000 358,000 −21,000 −40,000
Broadcasting (except internet) 482,000 394,000 373,000 311,000 263,000 220,000 −43,000 −262,000
Telecommunications 823,000 781,000 843,000 773,000 899,000 777,000 −123,000 −46,000
Internet publishing and broadcasting 148,000 196,000 186,000 232,000 212,000 205,000 −7,000 57,000
Internet service providers and data processing services 77,000 95,000 110,000 126,000 151,000 187,000 36,000 110,000
Other information services 73,000 71,000 95,000 82,000 93,000 98,000 5,000 24,000
Financial activities 9,338,000 9,099,000 9,073,000 9,253,000 9,285,000 9,208,000 −77,000 −130,000
Finance 4,356,000 4,487,000 4,377,000 4,466,000 4,451,000 4,583,000 132,000 227,000
Insurance 2,598,000 2,484,000 2,514,000 2,572,000 2,568,000 2,580,000 12,000 −17,000
Real estate 2,040,000 1,845,000 1,905,000 1,922,000 1,900,000 1,733,000 −167,000 −307,000
Rental and leasing services 344,000 282,000 278,000 293,000 366,000 311,000 −54,000 −33,000
Professional and business services 15,733,000 14,909,000 15,350,000 16,526,000 16,873,000 17,266,000 393,000 1,533,000
Management, administrative, and waste services 5,436,000 4,771,000 4,849,000 5,340,000 5,504,000 5,988,000 484,000 552,000
Professional and technical services 10,297,000 10,138,000 10,500,000 11,186,000 11,369,000 11,278,000 −91,000 981,000
Educational and health services 23,633,000 22,302,000 22,862,000 23,690,000 24,431,000 25,021,000 590,000 1,388,000
Educational services 4,938,000 4,524,000 4,662,000 4,876,000 5,223,000 5,202,000 −21,000 264,000
Health care and social assistance 18,695,000 17,777,000 18,200,000 18,813,000 19,208,000 19,820,000 612,000 1,124,000
Leisure and hospitality 13,150,000 10,210,000 11,160,000 12,130,000 12,713,000 12,516,000 −197,000 −634,000
Arts, entertainment, and recreation 2,506,000 1,831,000 1,989,000 2,325,000 2,530,000 2,500,000 −30,000 −6,000
Accommodation 1,446,000 922,000 937,000 1,172,000 1,306,000 1,138,000 −168,000 −308,000
Food services and drinking places 9,198,000 7,457,000 8,234,000 8,633,000 8,877,000 8,879,000 1,000 −319,000
Other services 6,153,000 5,375,000 5,627,000 5,925,000 5,894,000 5,919,000 25,000 −234,000
Other services, except private households 5,335,000 4,696,000 4,979,000 5,260,000 5,254,000 5,287,000 33,000 −48,000
Private households 818,000 679,000 649,000 665,000 641,000 632,000 −9,000 −186,000
Sample size
Agriculture and related industries 1,503 1,290 1,341 1,205 1,185 1,189
Mining 1,027 882 761 684 695 653
Construction 8,157 6,950 7,133 7,077 6,943 6,955
Manufacturing 14,791 12,521 12,525 12,069 11,725 11,217
Durable goods manufacturing 9,255 7,839 7,903 7,682 7,469 7,131
Nondurable goods manufacturing 5,536 4,682 4,622 4,387 4,256 4,086
Wholesale and retail trade 18,119 15,898 16,392 15,130 14,333 14,278
Wholesale trade 3,151 2,867 2,856 2,454 2,311 2,351
Retail trade 14,968 13,031 13,536 12,676 12,022 11,927
Transportation and utilities 6,410 5,723 5,991 6,013 5,868 5,805
Transportation and warehousing 5,290 4,684 5,039 5,125 4,874 4,750
Utilities 1,120 1,039 952 888 994 1,055
Information 2,265 1,926 1,986 1,912 1,934 1,764
Publishing industries (except internet) 376 322 305 337 435 387
Motion picture and sound recording industries 343 231 283 299 257 244
Broadcasting (except internet) 455 376 332 276 215 179
Telecommunications 798 689 742 645 694 583
Internet publishing and broadcasting 127 155 141 171 141 142
Internet service providers and data processing services 80 87 93 105 106 142
Other information services 86 66 90 79 86 87
Financial activities 9,068 8,171 8,034 7,626 7,235 7,140
Finance 4,269 4,015 3,851 3,706 3,506 3,568
Insurance 2,508 2,233 2,218 2,110 1,977 1,982
Real estate 1,963 1,663 1,702 1,571 1,480 1,339
Rental and leasing services 328 260 263 239 272 251
Professional and business services 14,790 12,996 13,122 13,276 12,741 13,103
Management, administrative, and waste services 5,031 4,068 4,071 4,219 4,086 4,428
Professional and technical services 9,759 8,928 9,051 9,057 8,655 8,675
Educational and health services 23,930 21,000 21,054 20,200 19,677 20,094
Educational services 4,889 4,231 4,228 4,103 4,095 4,135
Health care and social assistance 19,041 16,769 16,826 16,097 15,582 15,959
Leisure and hospitality 12,675 9,008 9,705 9,832 9,618 9,612
Arts, entertainment, and recreation 2,467 1,639 1,747 1,908 1,949 1,961
Accommodation 1,582 945 973 1,070 1,131 1,000
Food services and drinking places 8,626 6,424 6,985 6,854 6,538 6,651
Other services 6,239 5,081 5,102 5,091 4,809 4,820
Other services, except private households 5,490 4,473 4,566 4,583 4,314 4,331
Private households 749 608 536 508 495 489
* Many estimates here and in the final published BLS report are subject to substantial sampling error due to small underlying sample sizes.
Note: Workers 16 and older; excludes self-employed and self-incorporated. Changes may not match exactly due to rounding.
Source: Economic Policy Institute. 2022. Current Population Survey Extracts, Version 1.0.59, https://microdata.epi.org.