In 2024, 16.0 million U.S. workers were represented by a union—a decrease of 170,000 from 2023, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data released today. The share of workers represented by a union declined slightly from 11.2% to 11.1%.
These statistics don’t capture the number of workers who want to join unions—surveys indicate that tens of millions of nonunionized workers would join a union if they could. The data also don’t capture the increased number of workers who are actively organizing—union election petitions at the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) have more than doubled since 2021.
However, these numbers do illustrate a broken system that continues to thwart workers’ ability to form unions and secure a contract. As a result of decades of attacks on the right to organize, the current unionization rate is well under half what it was roughly 45 years ago.
“Despite strong public support and increased worker organizing, we have yet to see this momentum translate into higher unionization rates. It takes time to organize and win union elections. But even more importantly, weaknesses in current U.S. labor law make it harder for workers to join unions and bargain collectively over better pay, benefits, and working conditions,” said Heidi Shierholz, EPI president.
Other key data analyzed by EPI include:
Unionization remained much higher in the public sector than the private sector. In 2024, 35.7% of public-sector workers were covered by a union contract, down from 36.0% in 2023. Meanwhile, 6.7% of private-sector workers were covered by a union contract, down from 6.9% in 2023. Within the private sector, there were particularly large movements in manufacturing, which saw a net decline in unionization of 109,000, and private education and health services, which saw a net increase of 70,000.
Black workers continued to have the highest rate of unionization, at 13.2%. This compares with 10.8% for white workers, 9.8% for Asian workers, and 9.7% for Hispanic workers. Workers of color saw an increase in unionization levels of 68,000 in 2024, while white non-Hispanic workers saw a decrease of 240,000.
The gender gap in unionization declined in 2024. The unionization rate for men decreased from 11.6% to 11.3%, while the rate for women increased from 10.7% to 10.8%.
Weaknesses in federal and state labor law have made way for employer opposition to unions, contributing to the erosion of union coverage. Previous EPI research has found that employers are charged with violating federal law in 41.5% of all union election campaigns. Further, employers spend over $400 million annually on consultants to dissuade and weaken workers’ unionization efforts.
The Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act and the Public Service Freedom to Negotiate Act provide crucial reforms at the federal level to strengthen rights for private- and public-sector workers.