UNION MEMBERS IN 2005

In 2005, 12.5 percent of wage and salary workers were union members, unchanged from 2004, the U.S.

Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The union membership rate has declined

from a high of 20.1 percent in 1983, the first year for which comparable union data are available. Some

highlights from the 2005 data are:

• Nearly 15.7 million wage and salary workers were union members in 2005.

• Black workers were more likely to be union members than were white, Asian, or Hispanic workers.

• Men were more likely than women to be union members.

• Workers in the public sector had a union membership rate more than four times that of private-sector

employees.

Membership by Industry and Occupation

At 36.5 percent in 2005, the unionization rate for government workers was essentially unchanged from

a year earlier; the rate for private industry workers, at 7.8 percent, was also flat over the year. Within the

public sector, local government workers had the highest union membership rate, 41.9 percent. This group

includes several heavily unionized occupations, such as teachers, police officers, and fire fighters. Among

major private industries, transportation and utilities had the highest union membership rate, at 24.0 percent.

Information industries (13.6 percent), construction (13.1 percent), and manufacturing (13.0 percent) also had

higher-than-average rates. Within the information industry, telecommunications had a 21.4 percent union

membership rate. Financial activities had the lowest unionization rate in 2005—2.3 percent. (See table 3.)

Among occupational groups, education, training, and library occupations (38.5 percent) and protective

service workers (37.0 percent) had the highest unionization rates in 2005. Transportation and material

moving occupations (19.0 percent), construction and extraction occupations (17.6 percent), installation,

maintenance, and repair occupations (17.2 percent), production occupations (17.1 percent), and community

and social services occupations (16.5 percent), also had higher-than-average unionization rates. Sales and

related occupations (3.3 percent) and farming, fishing, and forestry occupations (3.9 percent) had the lowest

unionization rates. (See table 3.)

Technical information: (202) 691-6378

 http://www.bls.gov/cps/

Media contact: 691-5902

USDL 06-99

For release: 10:00 A.M. EST

Friday, January 20, 2006
2

Demographic Characteristics of Union Members

In 2005, the union membership rate was higher for men (13.5 percent) than for women (11.3 percent).

(See table 1.) The gap between their rates has narrowed considerably since 1983, when the rate for men

was 10 percentage points higher than the rate for women. This narrowing occurred because the union membership rate for men declined more rapidly than the rate for women over the period.

Blacks were more likely to be union members (15.1 percent) than were whites (12.2 percent), Asians

(11.2 percent), or Hispanics (10.4 percent). Among age groups, union membership rates were highest

among workers 45 to 64 years old (16.5 percent) and were lowest among those ages 16 to 24 (4.6 percent). Full-time workers were more than twice as likely as part-time workers to be union members, 13.7

and 6.5 percent, respectively. (See table 1.)

Union Representation of Nonmembers

About 1.5 million wage and salary workers were represented by a union on their main job in 2005, while

not being union members themselves. (See table 1.) About half of these workers were employed in government. (See table 3.)

Earnings

In 2005, full-time wage and salary workers who were union members had median usual weekly earnings of $801, compared with a median of $622 for wage and salary workers who were not represented by

unions. (See table 2.) The difference reflects a variety of influences in addition to coverage by a collective

bargaining agreement, including variations in the distributions of union members and nonunion employees by

occupation, industry, firm size, or geographic region. (For a discussion of the problem of differentiating

between the influence of unionization status and the influence of other worker characteristics on employee

earnings, see “Measuring union-nonunion earnings differences,” Monthly Labor Review, June 1990.)

Union Membership by State

In 2005, 31 states and the District of Columbia had union membership rates below the U.S. average

of 12.5 percent, while 19 states had higher rates. All states in the Middle Atlantic and Pacific divisions

continued to report union membership rates above the national average and all states in the East

South Central and West South Central divisions had rates below it. Over the year, 24 states and the

District of Columbia recorded lower union membership rates, 23 states registered higher rates, and 3

states had no change in their rates. (See table 5 and chart 1.)

Five states had union membership rates over 20.0 percent in 2005—New York (26.1 percent), Hawaii

(25.8 percent), Alaska (22.8 percent), and Michigan and New Jersey (20.5 percent each). Five states reported union membership rates below 5.0 percent in 2005. South Carolina and North Carolina continued to

record the lowest union membership rates, 2.3 percent and 2.9 percent, respectively. Arkansas and Virginia

had the next lowest union membership rates in 2005, 4.8 percent each, followed closely by Utah, at 4.9 percent.

The largest numbers of union members lived in California (2.4 million) and New York (2.1 million). Just

over half (7.9 million) of the 15.7 million union members in the U.S. lived in six states (California, New York,

Illinois, Michigan, Ohio, and New Jersey), though these states accounted for slightly less than one-third of

wage and salary employment nationally.
3

State union membership levels depend on both the employment level and the union membership rate.

Texas (with the second largest number of employed wage and salary workers) had less than one-fourth as

many union members as New York (the third largest), despite having nearly 1.5 million more wage and salary

employees. Similarly, Florida (with the fourth largest employment level) and Massachusetts (the thirteenth)

had virtually the same number of union members, even though Florida’s wage and salary employment level

was over two and one-half times that of Massachusetts.
Technical Note

The estimates in this release are obtained from the Current

Population Survey (CPS), which provides the basic information

on the labor force, employment, and unemployment. The survey

is conducted monthly for the Bureau of Labor Statistics by the

U.S. Census Bureau from a scientifically selected national

sample of about 60,000 households. The union membership and

earnings data are tabulated from one-quarter of the CPS monthly

sample and are limited to wage and salary workers. All selfemployed workers are excluded.

Union membership data for 2005 are not strictly comparable

with data for 2004 and earlier years because of the introduction

in January 2005 of revised population controls used in the CPS.

The effect of the revised population controls on the union

membership estimates is unknown. However, the effect of the

new controls on the monthly CPS estimates was to decrease the

December 2004 employment level by 45,000 and the unemployment level by 4,000. The updated controls had little or

no effect on unemployment rates and other ratios. For

additional information, see “Adjustments to Household Survey

Population Estimates in January 2005” in the February 2005

issue of Employment and Earnings, available on the Internet at

http://www.bls.gov/cps/cps05adj.pdf.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory

impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200,

TDD message referral phone number: 1-800-877-8339.

Reliability of the estimates

Statistics based on the CPS are subject to both sampling and

nonsampling error. When a sample, rather than the entire

population, is surveyed, there is a chance that the sample

estimates may differ from the “true” population values they

represent. The exact difference, or sampling error, varies

depending upon the particular sample selected, and this

variability is measured by the standard error of the estimate.

There is about a 90-percent chance, or level of confidence, that

an estimate based on a sample will differ by no more than 1.6

standard errors from the “true” population value because of

sampling error. BLS analyses are generally conducted at the 90-

percent level of confidence.

The CPS data also are affected by nonsampling error.

Nonsampling error can occur for many reasons, including the

failure to sample a segment of the population, inability to obtain information for all respondents in the sample, inability or

unwillingness of respondents to provide correct information, and errors made in the collection or processing of the

data.

 For a full discussion of the reliability of data from the

CPS and information on estimating standard errors, see the

“Explanatory Notes and Estimates of Error” section of

Employment and Earnings.

Definitions

The principal definitions used in this release are described

briefly below.

Union members. Data refer to members of a labor union or

an employee association similar to a union.

Represented by unions. Data refer to union members, as well

as workers who have no union affiliation but whose jobs are

covered by a union or an employee association contract.

Usual weekly earnings. Data represent earnings before taxes

and other deductions and include any overtime pay, commissions, or tips usually received (at the main job in the case

of multiple jobholders). Prior to 1994, respondents were asked

how much they usually earned per week. Since January 1994,

respondents have been asked to identify the easiest way for

them to report earnings (hourly, weekly, biweekly, twice

monthly, monthly, annually, other) and how much they usually

earn in the reported time period. Earnings reported on a basis

other than weekly are converted to a weekly equivalent. The

term “usual” is as perceived by the respondent. If the

respondent asks for a definition of usual, interviewers are

instructed to define the term as more than half of the weeks

worked during the past 4 or 5 months.

Median earnings. The median is the amount which divides

a given earnings distribution into two equal groups, one having

earnings above the median and the other having earnings below

the median. The estimating procedure places each reported or

calculated weekly earnings value into $50-wide intervals which

are centered around multiples of $50. The actual value is

estimated through the linear interpolation of the interval in

which the median lies.

Wage and salary workers. Workers who receive wages,

salaries, commissions, tips, payment in kind, or piece rates. The

group includes employees in both the private and public

sectors, but, for the purposes of the union membership and

earnings series, excludes all self-employed persons, regardless

of whether or not their businesses are incorporated.

Full-time workers. Workers who usually work 35 hours or

more per week at their sole or principal job.

Part-time workers. Workers who usually work fewer than

35 hours per week at their sole or principal job.

Hispanic or Latino ethnicity. Refers to persons who

identified themselves in the enumeration process as being

Spanish, Hispanic, or Latino. Persons whose ethnicity is

identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race.
Table 1. Union affiliation of employed wage and salary workers by selected characteristics

(Numbers in thousands)

Characteristic

2004 2005

Total

employed

Members of

unions 1

Represented

 by unions 2

Total

employed

Members of

unions 1

Represented

 by unions 2

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

AGE AND SEX

 Total, 16 years and over .......................................................... 123,554 15,472 12.5 17,087 13.8 125,889 15,685 12.5 17,223 13.7

 16 to 24 years ........................................................................ 19,109 890 4.7 1,019 5.3 19,283 878 4.6 1,019 5.3

 25 years and over .................................................................. 104,444 14,581 14.0 16,069 15.4 106,606 14,808 13.9 16,204 15.2

 25 to 34 years ...................................................................... 28,202 2,982 10.6 3,316 11.8 28,450 3,044 10.7 3,368 11.8

 35 to 44 years ...................................................................... 30,470 4,173 13.7 4,590 15.1 30,654 4,211 13.7 4,579 14.9

 45 to 54 years ...................................................................... 28,039 4,771 17.0 5,233 18.7 28,714 4,731 16.5 5,158 18.0

 55 to 64 years ...................................................................... 14,239 2,390 16.8 2,617 18.4 15,158 2,496 16.5 2,732 18.0

 65 years and over ................................................................ 3,495 264 7.5 314 9.0 3,631 325 8.9 366 10.1

 Men, 16 years and over ......................................................... 64,145 8,878 13.8 9,638 15.0 65,466 8,870 13.5 9,597 14.7

 16 to 24 years ...................................................................... 9,835 557 5.7 627 6.4 9,860 523 5.3 603 6.1

 25 years and over ................................................................ 54,310 8,321 15.3 9,010 16.6 55,606 8,347 15.0 8,994 16.2

 25 to 34 years .................................................................... 15,391 1,722 11.2 1,873 12.2 15,559 1,754 11.3 1,915 12.3

 35 to 44 years .................................................................... 16,035 2,449 15.3 2,658 16.6 16,196 2,422 15.0 2,582 15.9

 45 to 54 years .................................................................... 14,026 2,699 19.2 2,903 20.7 14,421 2,658 18.4 2,849 19.8

 55 to 64 years .................................................................... 7,117 1,309 18.4 1,414 19.9 7,606 1,346 17.7 1,458 19.2

 65 years and over .............................................................. 1,741 142 8.2 163 9.4 1,824 167 9.1 190 10.4

 Women, 16 years and over ................................................... 59,408 6,593 11.1 7,450 12.5 60,423 6,815 11.3 7,626 12.6

 16 to 24 years ...................................................................... 9,274 333 3.6 391 4.2 9,423 354 3.8 417 4.4

 25 years and over ................................................................ 50,134 6,260 12.5 7,058 14.1 51,000 6,461 12.7 7,210 14.1

 25 to 34 years .................................................................... 12,811 1,261 9.8 1,443 11.3 12,891 1,290 10.0 1,454 11.3

 35 to 44 years .................................................................... 14,435 1,725 11.9 1,931 13.4 14,457 1,790 12.4 1,997 13.8

 45 to 54 years .................................................................... 14,014 2,072 14.8 2,330 16.6 14,293 2,073 14.5 2,309 16.2

 55 to 64 years .................................................................... 7,122 1,081 15.2 1,203 16.9 7,552 1,150 15.2 1,274 16.9

 65 years and over .............................................................. 1,753 121 6.9 151 8.6 1,806 158 8.8 176 9.8

RACE, HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY, AND SEX

 White, 16 years and over ........................................................ 101,340 12,381 12.2 13,657 13.5 102,967 12,520 12.2 13,755 13.4

 Men ....................................................................................... 53,432 7,260 13.6 7,854 14.7 54,462 7,275 13.4 7,858 14.4

 Women ................................................................................. 47,908 5,121 10.7 5,803 12.1 48,505 5,245 10.8 5,897 12.2

 Black or African American, 16 years and over ....................... 14,090 2,130 15.1 2,355 16.7 14,459 2,178 15.1 2,391 16.5

 Men ....................................................................................... 6,409 1,085 16.9 1,185 18.5 6,603 1,062 16.1 1,166 17.7

 Women ................................................................................. 7,681 1,045 13.6 1,170 15.2 7,857 1,115 14.2 1,225 15.6

 Asian, 16 years and over ........................................................ 5,280 603 11.4 670 12.7 5,479 614 11.2 666 12.2

 Men ....................................................................................... 2,815 328 11.7 371 13.2 2,881 314 10.9 337 11.7

 Women ................................................................................. 2,465 275 11.1 299 12.1 2,598 299 11.5 329 12.7

 Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, 16 years and over ...................... 16,533 1,676 10.1 1,888 11.4 17,191 1,793 10.4 1,981 11.5

 Men ....................................................................................... 9,857 1,016 10.3 1,130 11.5 10,324 1,093 10.6 1,185 11.5

 Women ................................................................................. 6,676 661 9.9 758 11.4 6,866 700 10.2 796 11.6

FULL- OR PART-TIME STATUS 3

 Full-time workers .................................................................... 101,224 14,029 13.9 15,463 15.3 103,560 14,207 13.7 15,551 15.0

 Part-time workers ................................................................... 22,047 1,406 6.4 1,587 7.2 22,052 1,441 6.5 1,630 7.4

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. 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: Beginning in January 2005, data reflect revised population controls

used in the household survey. Estimates for the above race groups (white,

black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because data are

not presented for all races. In addition, persons whose ethnicity is identified as

Hispanic or Latino may be of any race and, therefore, are classified by

ethnicity as well as race. Data refer to the sole or principal job of full- and

part-time workers. Excluded are all self-employed workers regardless of

whether or not their businesses are incorporated.
Table 2. Median weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by union affiliation and selected characteristics

Characteristic

2004 2005

Total

Members

of

unions 1

Represented

by

unions 2

Nonunion Total

Members

of

unions 1

Represented

by

unions 2

Nonunion

AGE AND SEX

 Total, 16 years and over .............................................. $638 $781 $776 $612 $651 $801 $795 $622

 16 to 24 years ............................................................ 390 498 494 385 397 502 502 392

 25 years and over ...................................................... 683 798 793 656 696 820 815 669

 25 to 34 years .......................................................... 604 724 717 590 610 735 729 595

 35 to 44 years .......................................................... 713 813 808 690 731 844 837 708

 45 to 54 years .......................................................... 743 834 831 718 748 854 851 722

 55 to 64 years .......................................................... 725 835 835 693 742 852 851 716

 65 years and over .................................................... 560 728 744 520 569 679 683 551

 Men, 16 years and over ............................................. 713 829 828 685 722 857 855 692

 16 to 24 years .......................................................... 400 504 496 395 409 513 511 403

 25 years and over .................................................... 762 846 846 743 771 876 876 749

 25 to 34 years ........................................................ 639 751 748 620 644 763 760 624

 35 to 44 years ........................................................ 804 868 865 787 822 921 918 800

 45 to 54 years ........................................................ 857 878 881 847 853 911 912 831

 55 to 64 years ........................................................ 843 870 877 829 855 888 895 840

 65 years and over .................................................. 641 753 776 620 644 758 768 625

 Women, 16 years and over ....................................... 573 723 719 541 585 731 726 559

 16 to 24 years .......................................................... 375 487 491 370 381 484 487 377

 25 years and over .................................................... 599 733 730 580 612 743 738 593

 25 to 34 years ........................................................ 561 678 665 541 573 693 682 548

 35 to 44 years ........................................................ 608 735 733 590 621 740 735 603

 45 to 54 years ........................................................ 625 758 755 604 644 760 758 619

 55 to 64 years ........................................................ 615 767 767 592 639 795 785 610

 65 years and over .................................................. 478 687 733 455 492 610 599 480

RACE, HISPANIC OR LATINO

ETHNICITY, AND SEX

 White, 16 years and over ............................................ 657 808 802 626 672 830 824 641

 Men ........................................................................... 732 855 854 704 743 884 884 714

 Women ..................................................................... 584 738 734 557 596 749 743 576

 Black or African American, 16 years and over ........... 525 656 651 507 520 656 653 500

 Men ........................................................................... 569 679 679 534 559 689 682 523

 Women ..................................................................... 505 629 621 490 499 632 630 478

 Asian, 16 years and over ............................................ 708 765 774 691 753 809 805 744

 Men ........................................................................... 802 775 786 809 825 819 817 827

 Women ..................................................................... 613 756 762 594 665 789 785 643

 Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, 16 years and over .......... 456 679 670 428 471 673 661 449

 Men ........................................................................... 480 697 690 455 489 713 704 473

 Women ..................................................................... 419 623 616 401 429 609 606 414

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: Beginning in January 2005, data reflect revised population

controls used in the household survey. Estimates for the above race

groups (white, black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to

totals because data are not presented for all races. In addition,

persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of

any race and, therefore, are classified by ethnicity as well as race. 

Data refer to the sole or principal job of full- and part-time workers.

Excluded are all self-employed workers regardless of whether or not

their businesses are incorporated.
Table 3. Union affiliation of employed wage and salary workers by occupation and industry

(Numbers in thousands)

Occupation and industry

2004 2005

Total

employed

Members of

unions 1

Represented

 by unions 2

Total

employed

Members of

unions 1

Represented

 by unions 2

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

OCCUPATION

Management, professional, and related occupations ............... 41,451 5,418 13.1 6,256 15.1 42,226 5,639 13.4 6,385 15.1

 Management, business, and financial operations

 occupations ....................................................................... 15,758 732 4.6 895 5.7 15,955 793 5.0 939 5.9

 Management occupations ................................................ 10,796 441 4.1 553 5.1 10,921 485 4.4 585 5.4

 Business and financial operations occupations ................ 4,962 291 5.9 342 6.9 5,034 308 6.1 354 7.0

 Professional and related occupations ................................... 25,693 4,686 18.2 5,361 20.9 26,271 4,845 18.4 5,447 20.7

 Computer and mathematical occupations ........................ 2,962 128 4.3 171 5.8 3,067 142 4.6 172 5.6

 Architecture and engineering occupations ....................... 2,597 209 8.0 246 9.5 2,593 221 8.5 259 10.0

 Life, physical, and social science occupations ................. 1,204 106 8.8 129 10.7 1,305 125 9.6 140 10.7

 Community and social services occupations .................... 2,132 370 17.4 422 19.8 2,100 346 16.5 376 17.9

 Legal occupations ............................................................. 1,216 75 6.2 92 7.6 1,261 71 5.6 83 6.6

 Education, training, and library occupations ..................... 7,636 2,874 37.6 3,235 42.4 7,813 3,006 38.5 3,354 42.9

 Arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media

 occupations ................................................................... 1,894 162 8.6 184 9.7 1,957 152 7.8 171 8.8

 Healthcare practitioner and technical occupations ........... 6,052 762 12.6 882 14.6 6,175 782 12.7 892 14.4

Service occupations ................................................................. 20,724 2,371 11.4 2,552 12.3 21,074 2,446 11.6 2,659 12.6

 Healthcare support occupations ........................................... 2,791 290 10.4 315 11.3 2,971 286 9.6 317 10.7

 Protective service occupations ............................................. 2,840 1,059 37.3 1,118 39.4 2,843 1,051 37.0 1,109 39.0

 Food preparation and serving related occupations .............. 7,164 294 4.1 337 4.7 7,361 316 4.3 362 4.9

 Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance

 occupations ....................................................................... 4,597 490 10.7 529 11.5 4,525 504 11.1 553 12.2

 Personal care and service occupations ................................ 3,331 238 7.1 254 7.6 3,373 288 8.5 317 9.4

Sales and office occupations .................................................... 32,322 2,493 7.7 2,780 8.6 32,541 2,385 7.3 2,671 8.2

 Sales and related occupations ............................................. 13,527 488 3.6 548 4.1 13,630 451 3.3 519 3.8

 Office and administrative support occupations ..................... 18,795 2,005 10.7 2,232 11.9 18,911 1,934 10.2 2,152 11.4

Natural resources, construction, and maintenance

 occupations ........................................................................... 12,081 2,222 18.4 2,343 19.4 12,907 2,129 16.5 2,238 17.3

 Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations ........................... 862 27 3.1 34 3.9 898 35 3.9 38 4.3

 Construction and extraction occupations .............................. 6,680 1,312 19.6 1,370 20.5 7,296 1,283 17.6 1,348 18.5

 Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations ............... 4,540 883 19.4 939 20.7 4,713 811 17.2 851 18.1

Production, transportation, and material moving

 occupations ........................................................................... 16,976 2,968 17.5 3,156 18.6 17,142 3,086 18.0 3,271 19.1

 Production occupations ........................................................ 9,085 1,485 16.3 1,582 17.4 9,007 1,539 17.1 1,617 17.9

 Transportation and material moving occupations ................. 7,891 1,483 18.8 1,574 20.0 8,135 1,547 19.0 1,655 20.3

See footnotes at end of table.
Table 3. Union affiliation of employed wage and salary workers by occupation and industry—Continued

(Numbers in thousands)

Occupation and industry

2004 2005

Total

employed

Members of

unions 1

Represented

 by unions 2

Total

employed

Members of

unions 1

Represented

 by unions 2

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

INDUSTRY

Private sector ............................................................................ 103,584 8,205 7.9 8,956 8.6 105,508 8,255 7.8 8,962 8.5

 Agriculture and related industries ........................................... 1,023 23 2.2 30 2.9 1,021 28 2.7 30 3.0

 Nonagricultural industries ....................................................... 102,560 8,182 8.0 8,926 8.7 104,487 8,227 7.9 8,931 8.5

 Mining .................................................................................. 496 57 11.4 58 11.7 600 48 8.0 57 9.5

 Construction ........................................................................ 7,550 1,110 14.7 1,162 15.4 8,053 1,057 13.1 1,111 13.8

 Manufacturing ...................................................................... 15,754 2,036 12.9 2,183 13.9 15,518 2,017 13.0 2,127 13.7

 Durable goods ................................................................. 9,885 1,316 13.3 1,407 14.2 9,845 1,310 13.3 1,382 14.0

 Nondurable goods ........................................................... 5,869 720 12.3 776 13.2 5,673 707 12.5 746 13.1

 Wholesale and retail trade ................................................... 18,754 1,028 5.5 1,107 5.9 18,989 1,021 5.4 1,122 5.9

 Wholesale trade ............................................................... 4,083 189 4.6 214 5.2 4,017 236 5.9 259 6.4

 Retail trade ...................................................................... 14,671 839 5.7 893 6.1 14,973 785 5.2 864 5.8

 Transportation and utilities .................................................. 4,893 1,218 24.9 1,287 26.3 5,212 1,252 24.0 1,309 25.1

 Transportation and warehousing ..................................... 4,043 976 24.2 1,031 25.5 4,379 1,024 23.4 1,071 24.4

 Utilities ............................................................................. 850 241 28.4 256 30.1 833 228 27.4 239 28.6

 Information 3 ........................................................................ 3,058 433 14.2 470 15.4 2,934 398 13.6 422 14.4

 Publishing, except Internet .............................................. 778 52 6.7 59 7.6 765 68 8.8 74 9.7

 Motion pictures and sound recording .............................. 329 52 15.7 54 16.4 277 42 15.0 43 15.5

 Broadcasting, except Internet .......................................... 502 47 9.3 53 10.5 534 46 8.6 48 9.0

 Telecommunications ........................................................ 1,218 273 22.4 292 24.0 1,096 234 21.4 248 22.6

 Financial activities ............................................................... 8,490 171 2.0 209 2.5 8,619 195 2.3 238 2.8

 Finance and insurance .................................................... 6,301 96 1.5 124 2.0 6,304 102 1.6 132 2.1

 Finance ....................................................................... 4,111 56 1.4 73 1.8 4,114 59 1.4 77 1.9

 Insurance .................................................................... 2,191 40 1.8 51 2.3 2,190 44 2.0 54 2.5

 Real estate and rental and leasing .................................. 2,188 76 3.5 85 3.9 2,315 92 4.0 107 4.6

 Professional and business services .................................... 10,815 246 2.3 306 2.8 10,951 292 2.7 341 3.1

 Professional and technical services ................................ 6,263 70 1.1 102 1.6 6,468 98 1.5 120 1.9

 Management, administrative, and waste services ........... 4,552 177 3.9 204 4.5 4,483 194 4.3 221 4.9

 Education and health services ............................................. 16,870 1,405 8.3 1,593 9.4 17,357 1,434 8.3 1,632 9.4

 Educational services ........................................................ 3,243 421 13.0 475 14.6 3,312 435 13.1 511 15.4

 Health care and social assistance ................................... 13,627 984 7.2 1,119 8.2 14,045 999 7.1 1,121 8.0

 Leisure and hospitality ......................................................... 10,326 319 3.1 368 3.6 10,658 333 3.1 377 3.5

 Arts, entertainment, and recreation ................................. 1,777 114 6.4 123 6.9 1,869 118 6.3 134 7.2

 Accommodation and food services .................................. 8,548 205 2.4 245 2.9 8,790 215 2.4 243 2.8

 Accommodation ........................................................... 1,431 117 8.2 132 9.2 1,459 122 8.3 130 8.9

 Food services and drinking places .............................. 7,117 88 1.2 112 1.6 7,331 93 1.3 113 1.5

 Other services 3 ................................................................... 5,556 158 2.8 183 3.3 5,596 181 3.2 194 3.5

 Other services, except private households ...................... 4,782 148 3.1 172 3.6 4,799 175 3.7 188 3.9

Public sector ............................................................................. 19,970 7,267 36.4 8,131 40.7 20,381 7,430 36.5 8,262 40.5

 Federal goverment ............................................................... 3,298 985 29.9 1,153 35.0 3,427 954 27.8 1,134 33.1

 State government ................................................................. 5,712 1,751 30.7 1,961 34.3 5,874 1,838 31.3 2,056 35.0

 Local government ................................................................. 10,961 4,532 41.3 5,017 45.8 11,080 4,638 41.9 5,071 45.8

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 Includes other industries, not shown separately.

 NOTE: Beginning in January 2005, data reflect revised population controls

used in the household survey. Data refer to the sole or principal job of fulland part-time workers. Excluded are all self-employed workers regardless of

whether or not their businesses are incorporated.
Table 4. Median weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by union affiliation, occupation, and industry

Occupation and industry

2004 2005

Total

Members

of

unions 1

Represented

by

unions 2

Nonunion Total

Members

of

unions 1

Represented

by

unions 2

Nonunion

OCCUPATION

Management, professional, and related occupations ....................... $918 $921 $916 $918 $937 $942 $937 $937

 Management, business, and financial operations

 occupations ............................................................................... 965 963 972 965 997 1,015 1,029 995

 Management occupations ........................................................ 1,052 1,065 1,074 1,050 1,083 1,137 1,146 1,076

 Business and financial operations occupations ........................ 847 880 881 844 871 854 866 872

 Professional and related occupations ........................................... 883 915 907 875 902 932 924 894

 Computer and mathematical occupations ................................ 1,114 1,000 983 1,124 1,132 1,009 1,029 1,141

 Architecture and engineering occupations ............................... 1,098 1,080 1,090 1,100 1,105 1,133 1,133 1,101

 Life, physical, and social science occupations ......................... 957 949 977 955 965 978 1,011 959

 Community and social services occupations ............................ 707 827 817 666 725 880 865 693

 Legal occupations ..................................................................... 1,070 1,174 1,155 1,058 1,052 1,147 1,155 1,042

 Education, training, and library occupations ............................. 781 899 886 687 798 913 898 710

 Arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media

 occupations ........................................................................... 768 953 972 754 819 983 925 808

 Healthcare practitioner and technical occupations ................... 852 938 933 841 878 932 932 867

Service occupations ......................................................................... 411 655 647 389 413 643 629 392

 Healthcare support occupations ................................................... 407 458 462 401 410 466 462 405

 Protective service occupations ..................................................... 700 907 897 567 678 896 886 568

 Food preparation and serving related occupations ...................... 360 445 435 355 356 439 442 350

 Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance

 occupations ............................................................................... 385 515 513 368 394 528 518 378

 Personal care and service occupations ........................................ 402 522 518 394 409 558 549 397

Sales and office occupations ............................................................ 558 662 658 545 575 681 675 562

 Sales and related occupations ..................................................... 604 576 577 606 622 623 625 622

 Office and administrative support occupations ............................. 535 676 671 519 550 689 682 528

Natural resources, construction, and maintenance

 occupations ................................................................................... 621 867 858 581 623 910 903 585

 Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations ................................... 356 3 ( ) 3 ( ) 352 372 3 ( ) 3 ( ) 369

 Construction and extraction occupations ...................................... 604 $861 $852 555 604 $913 $903 554

 Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations ....................... 704 886 880 662 705 915 913 666

Production, transportation, and material moving

 occupations ................................................................................... 523 687 681 498 540 709 704 510

 Production occupations ................................................................ 526 681 674 503 538 698 693 511

 Transportation and material moving occupations ......................... 520 695 689 491 543 721 717 508

See footnotes at end of table.
Table 4. Median weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers by union affiliation, occupation, and industry—Continued

Occupation and industry

2004 2005

Total

Members

of

unions 1

Represented

by

unions 2

Nonunion Total

Members

of

unions 1

Represented

by

unions 2

Nonunion

INDUSTRY

Private sector .................................................................................... $615 $739 $734 $604 $625 $757 $752 $615

 Agriculture and related industries ................................................... 403 3 ( ) 3 ( ) 402 402 3 ( ) 3 ( ) 402

 Nonagricultural industries ............................................................... 617 $740 $735 606 629 $758 $753 617

 Mining .......................................................................................... 874 905 911 865 885 3 ( ) 989 870

 Construction ................................................................................ 618 893 884 588 619 $933 926 590

 Manufacturing .............................................................................. 662 694 692 654 676 722 719 667

 Durable goods ......................................................................... 691 707 706 687 704 751 747 695

 Nondurable goods ................................................................... 611 670 662 602 624 676 672 618

 Wholesale and retail trade ........................................................... 550 596 590 547 566 615 610 562

 Wholesale trade ....................................................................... 677 722 709 674 692 678 676 694

 Retail trade .............................................................................. 509 567 560 507 515 590 585 513

 Transportation and utilities .......................................................... 711 854 850 662 726 864 860 676

 Transportation and warehousing ............................................. 668 819 814 619 688 829 827 640

 Utilities ..................................................................................... 957 979 978 948 941 960 954 931

 Information 4 ................................................................................ 828 893 887 808 832 931 925 810

 Publishing, except Internet ...................................................... 720 844 829 710 755 860 867 740

 Motion pictures and sound recording ...................................... 805 3 ( ) 3 ( ) 762 751 3 ( ) 3 ( ) 691

 Broadcasting, except Internet .................................................. 763 3 ( ) 3 ( ) 749 749 3 ( ) 3 ( ) 738

 Telecommunications ................................................................ 918 $910 $897 929 927 $937 $935 923

 Financial activities ....................................................................... 706 657 649 708 741 698 696 743

 Finance and insurance ............................................................ 738 636 629 740 765 692 696 767

 Finance ............................................................................... 735 606 616 737 765 650 667 768

 Insurance ............................................................................ 743 3 ( ) 3 ( ) 744 764 3 ( ) 729 766

 Real estate and rental and leasing .......................................... 615 $677 $670 613 653 $711 696 649

 Professional and business services ............................................ 709 679 694 710 739 663 673 743

 Professional and technical services ........................................ 927 940 937 927 961 770 858 963

 Management, administrative, and waste services ................... 478 607 606 470 488 586 578 485

 Education and health services ..................................................... 613 717 728 603 627 731 736 617

 Educational services ................................................................ 716 828 831 679 737 818 809 718

 Health care and social assistance ........................................... 595 656 671 588 607 684 692 601

 Leisure and hospitality ................................................................. 407 518 508 402 409 513 510 405

 Arts, entertainment, and recreation ......................................... 523 677 662 513 521 652 618 515

 Accommodation and food services .......................................... 391 477 473 387 388 487 486 384

 Accommodation ................................................................... 432 481 490 422 455 515 510 438

 Food services and drinking places ...................................... 378 467 422 377 372 400 406 372

 Other services 4 ........................................................................... 528 749 750 521 535 694 698 524

 Other services, except private households .............................. 560 764 764 551 579 698 701 572

Public sector ..................................................................................... 751 832 827 683 758 850 842 692

 Federal goverment ....................................................................... 856 840 848 869 882 873 879 887

 State government ......................................................................... 725 788 781 681 733 802 798 684

 Local government ......................................................................... 731 844 834 627 738 858 844 633

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.

4 Includes other industries, not shown separately.

 NOTE: Beginning in January 2005, data reflect revised population

controls used in the household survey. Data refer to the sole or principal

job of full- and part-time workers. Excluded are all self-employed workers

regardless of whether or not their businesses are incorporated.
Table 5. Union affiliation of employed wage and salary workers by state

(Numbers in thousands)

State

2004 2005

Total

employed

Members of

unions 1

Represented

by unions 2

Total

employed

Members of

unions 1

Represented

by unions 2

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

 Alabama ..................................................................... 1,861 181 9.7 213 11.5 1,909 195 10.2 223 11.7

 Alaska ......................................................................... 268 54 20.1 60 22.4 275 63 22.8 66 24.1

 Arizona ....................................................................... 2,323 145 6.3 183 7.9 2,366 145 6.1 181 7.7

 Arkansas ..................................................................... 1,058 51 4.8 65 6.2 1,138 54 4.8 68 6.0

 California .................................................................... 14,414 2,385 16.5 2,588 18.0 14,687 2,424 16.5 2,610 17.8

 Colorado ..................................................................... 2,050 172 8.4 191 9.3 2,052 170 8.3 193 9.4

 Connecticut ................................................................. 1,539 235 15.3 256 16.6 1,550 247 15.9 263 17.0

 Delaware .................................................................... 373 46 12.4 49 13.2 386 46 11.8 50 12.9

 District of Columbia .................................................... 258 33 12.7 38 14.5 259 29 11.3 33 12.8

 Florida ......................................................................... 6,943 414 6.0 533 7.7 7,389 401 5.4 532 7.2

 Georgia ....................................................................... 3,773 242 6.4 282 7.5 3,765 190 5.0 226 6.0

 Hawaii ......................................................................... 533 126 23.7 132 24.8 545 141 25.8 145 26.7

 Idaho ........................................................................... 561 33 5.8 44 7.9 606 31 5.2 38 6.3

 Illinois .......................................................................... 5,410 908 16.8 971 17.9 5,473 927 16.9 965 17.6

 Indiana ........................................................................ 2,717 311 11.4 338 12.4 2,789 346 12.4 368 13.2

 Iowa ............................................................................ 1,345 141 10.5 171 12.7 1,369 157 11.5 185 13.5

 Kansas ........................................................................ 1,223 103 8.4 132 10.8 1,210 85 7.0 115 9.5

 Kentucky ..................................................................... 1,699 164 9.6 197 11.6 1,696 164 9.7 184 10.8

 Louisiana .................................................................... 1,697 129 7.6 157 9.3 1,778 114 6.4 132 7.4

 Maine .......................................................................... 564 64 11.3 74 13.2 582 69 11.9 79 13.6

 Maryland ..................................................................... 2,502 272 10.9 313 12.5 2,530 337 13.3 379 15.0

 Massachusetts ............................................................ 2,920 393 13.5 430 14.7 2,886 402 13.9 431 14.9

 Michigan ..................................................................... 4,305 930 21.6 966 22.4 4,288 880 20.5 916 21.4

 Minnesota ................................................................... 2,429 424 17.5 443 18.3 2,494 392 15.7 410 16.4

 Mississippi .................................................................. 1,108 53 4.8 70 6.3 1,089 77 7.1 105 9.7

 Missouri ...................................................................... 2,546 315 12.4 357 14.0 2,532 290 11.5 319 12.6

 Montana ...................................................................... 366 43 11.7 46 12.6 391 42 10.7 48 12.2

 Nebraska .................................................................... 831 69 8.3 83 10.0 830 69 8.3 79 9.5

 Nevada ....................................................................... 1,006 126 12.5 144 14.3 1,051 145 13.8 158 15.1

 New Hampshire .......................................................... 618 61 9.9 68 11.0 627 65 10.4 72 11.5

 New Jersey ................................................................. 3,769 745 19.8 813 21.6 3,868 791 20.5 838 21.7

 New Mexico ................................................................ 734 49 6.7 65 8.9 777 63 8.1 83 10.7

 New York .................................................................... 7,901 1,996 25.3 2,085 26.4 8,008 2,090 26.1 2,201 27.5

 North Carolina ............................................................ 3,549 97 2.7 127 3.6 3,631 107 2.9 143 3.9

 North Dakota .............................................................. 292 22 7.7 26 9.0 289 21 7.3 26 9.2

 Ohio ............................................................................ 4,998 759 15.2 820 16.4 5,039 804 16.0 866 17.2

 Oklahoma ................................................................... 1,402 86 6.1 100 7.1 1,432 77 5.4 91 6.4

 Oregon ........................................................................ 1,471 224 15.2 243 16.5 1,470 213 14.5 231 15.7

 Pennsylvania .............................................................. 5,298 793 15.0 842 15.9 5,456 753 13.8 818 15.0

 Rhode Island .............................................................. 487 79 16.3 83 17.0 494 79 15.9 83 16.8

 South Carolina ............................................................ 1,765 54 3.0 74 4.2 1,739 40 2.3 58 3.3

 South Dakota .............................................................. 347 21 6.0 27 7.7 350 21 5.9 29 8.2

 Tennessee .................................................................. 2,465 164 6.7 191 7.7 2,368 128 5.4 156 6.6

 Texas .......................................................................... 9,072 457 5.0 573 6.3 9,485 506 5.3 590 6.2

 Utah ............................................................................ 1,001 58 5.8 67 6.7 1,035 51 4.9 63 6.1

 Vermont ...................................................................... 291 29 9.8 33 11.4 287 31 10.8 37 13.0

 Virginia ........................................................................ 3,308 176 5.3 218 6.6 3,406 165 4.8 211 6.2

 Washington ................................................................. 2,645 510 19.3 536 20.3 2,746 523 19.1 559 20.4

 West Virginia .............................................................. 700 99 14.2 110 15.7 688 99 14.4 107 15.5

 Wisconsin ................................................................... 2,597 414 16.0 439 16.9 2,551 410 16.1 438 17.2

 Wyoming ..................................................................... 222 18 8.0 22 9.8 228 18 7.9 22 9.5

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: Beginning in January 2005, data reflect revised population

controls used in the household survey. Data refer to the sole or principal

job of full- and part-time workers. Excluded are all self-employed workers

regardless of whether or not their businesses are incorporated.