1

Technical information: (202) 691-6378

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

Media contact: 691-5902

USDL 05-112

For release: 10:00 A.M. EST

Thursday, January 27, 2005

UNION MEMBERS IN 2004

.

In 2004, 12.5 percent of wage and salary workers were union members, down from 12.9 percent in

2003, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The union membership

rate has steadily declined from a high of 20.1 percent in 1983, the first year for which comparable union

data are available. Some highlights from the 2004 data are:

Membership by Industry and Occupation

In 2004, workers in the public sector had a union membership rate more than four times that of privatesector employees. At 36.4 percent, the unionization rate for government workers was down slightly from

37.2 percent a year earlier. The rate for private industry workers, at 7.9 percent in 2004, was about half

what it had been in 1983. Within the public sector, local government workers had the highest union membership rate, 41.3 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 24.9 percent. Construction (14.7 percent), information industries (14.2 percent),

and manufacturing (12.9 percent) also had higher-than-average rates. Within the information industry, telecommunications had a 22.4 percent union membership rate. Financial activities had the lowest unionization

rate in 2004—2.0 percent. (See table 3.)

Among occupational groups, education, training, and library occupations (37.6 percent) and protective

service workers (37.3 percent) had the highest unionization rates in 2004. Construction and extraction occupations (19.6 percent), installation, maintenance, and repair occupations (19.4 percent), transportation and

material moving occupations (18.8 percent), community and social services occupations (17.4 percent), and

production occupations (16.3 percent) also had higher-than-average rates. Farming, fishing, and forestry

occupations (3.1 percent) and sales and related occupations (3.6 percent) had the lowest unionization rates.

(See table 3.)

• About 36 percent of government workers were union members in 2004, compared with about 8 percent of workers in private-sector industries.

• Two occupational groups—education, training, and library occupations and protective service occupations—had the highest unionization rates in 2004, at about 37 percent each. Protective service occupations include fire fighters and police officers.

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

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

workers.
2

Demographic Characteristics of Union Members

In 2004, the union membership rate was higher for men (13.8 percent) than for women (11.1 percent).

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. (See table 1.)

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

(11.4 percent), or Hispanics or Latinos (10.1 percent). Among age groups, union membership rates were

highest among workers 45 to 54 years old (17.0 percent) and were lowest among those ages 16 to 24

(4.7 percent). Full-time workers were more than twice as likely as part-time workers to be union members,

13.9 and 6.4 percent, respectively. (See table 1.)

Union Representation of Nonmembers

About 1.6 million wage and salary workers were represented by a union on their main job in 2004, while

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

Earnings

In 2004, full-time wage and salary workers who were union members had median usual weekly earnings of $781, compared with a median of $612 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 2004, 32 states had union membership rates below that of the U.S. average, 12.5 percent, while 17

states and the District of Columbia had higher rates. All states in the Middle Atlantic and Pacific divisions

again reported union membership rates above the national average, while all states in the East South Central

and West South Central divisions continued to have rates below it. The states in the Mountain division also

recorded union membership rates at or below that of the U.S. (See table 5 and chart 1.)

Four states had union membership rates over 20 percent in 2004—New York (25.3 percent), Hawaii

(23.7 percent), Michigan (21.6 percent), and Alaska (20.1 percent). All four states have had rates above

20 percent every year since data became regularly available in 1995. Four states reported union membership rates below 5 percent in 2004. North Carolina and South Carolina continued to record the lowest

union membership rates, 2.7 and 3.0 percent, respectively. These two states have had the lowest union

membership rates each year since the state series became available. Arkansas and Mississippi had

the next lowest union membership rates, 4.8 percent each in 2004.

The largest numbers of union members lived in California (2.4 million) and New York (2.0 million).

About half (7.8 million) of the 15.5 million union members in the U.S. lived in six states (California, New

York, Michigan, Illinois, Pennsylvania, and Ohio), although these states accounted for just over one-third

of wage and salary employment nationally.
3

The number of union members in a state depends on both its employment level and its union membership

rate. Texas (the second largest state in terms of the number of wage and salary workers) had less than onefourth as many union members as New York (the third largest), despite having nearly 1.2 million more wage

and salary employees. Similarly, Florida (the fourth largest state) and Wisconsin (the sixteenth) had the same

number of union members, even though Florida’s wage and salary employment level was more than two and

one-half times that of Wisconsin.
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 2004 are not strictly comparable

with data for 2003 and earlier years because of the introduction

in January 2004 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

January 2004 employment level by 409,000 and the unemployment level by 27,000 relative to the December 2003 level.

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 2004” in the February 2004 issue of Employment and

Earnings, available on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/cps/

cps04adj.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

2003 2004

Total

employed

Members of

unions1

Represented

 by unions2

Total

employed

Members of

unions1

Represented

 by unions2

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

AGE AND SEX

 Total, 16 years and over .......................................................... 122,358 15,776 12.9 17,448 14.3 123,554 15,472 12.5 17,087 13.8

 16 to 24 years ......................................................................... 18,904 966 5.1 1,124 5.9 19,109 890 4.7 1,019 5.3

 25 years and over ................................................................... 103,454 14,810 14.3 16,324 15.8 104,444 14,581 14.0 16,069 15.4

 25 to 34 years ........................................................................ 28,179 3,097 11.0 3,455 12.3 28,202 2,982 10.6 3,316 11.8

 35 to 44 years ........................................................................ 30,714 4,308 14.0 4,717 15.4 30,470 4,173 13.7 4,590 15.1

 45 to 54 years ........................................................................ 27,567 4,848 17.6 5,307 19.3 28,039 4,771 17.0 5,233 18.7

 55 to 64 years ........................................................................ 13,633 2,300 16.9 2,547 18.7 14,239 2,390 16.8 2,617 18.4

 65 years and over .................................................................. 3,361 258 7.7 297 8.8 3,495 264 7.5 314 9.0

 Men, 16 years and over .......................................................... 63,236 9,044 14.3 9,848 15.6 64,145 8,878 13.8 9,638 15.0

 16 to 24 years ........................................................................ 9,683 595 6.1 685 7.1 9,835 557 5.7 627 6.4

 25 years and over .................................................................. 53,553 8,450 15.8 9,163 17.1 54,310 8,321 15.3 9,010 16.6

 25 to 34 years ....................................................................... 15,263 1,826 12.0 2,005 13.1 15,391 1,722 11.2 1,873 12.2

 35 to 44 years ....................................................................... 16,080 2,535 15.8 2,735 17.0 16,035 2,449 15.3 2,658 16.6

 45 to 54 years ....................................................................... 13,723 2,684 19.6 2,891 21.1 14,026 2,699 19.2 2,903 20.7

 55 to 64 years ....................................................................... 6,776 1,271 18.8 1,377 20.3 7,117 1,309 18.4 1,414 19.9

 65 years and over ................................................................. 1,710 133 7.8 155 9.0 1,741 142 8.2 163 9.4

 Women, 16 years and over .................................................... 59,122 6,732 11.4 7,601 12.9 59,408 6,593 11.1 7,450 12.5

 16 to 24 years ........................................................................ 9,221 371 4.0 439 4.8 9,274 333 3.6 391 4.2

 25 years and over .................................................................. 49,901 6,360 12.7 7,161 14.4 50,134 6,260 12.5 7,058 14.1

 25 to 34 years ....................................................................... 12,916 1,270 9.8 1,451 11.2 12,811 1,261 9.8 1,443 11.3

 35 to 44 years ....................................................................... 14,634 1,773 12.1 1,982 13.5 14,435 1,725 11.9 1,931 13.4

 45 to 54 years ....................................................................... 13,844 2,163 15.6 2,416 17.5 14,014 2,072 14.8 2,330 16.6

 55 to 64 years ....................................................................... 6,857 1,029 15.0 1,170 17.1 7,122 1,081 15.2 1,203 16.9

 65 years and over ................................................................. 1,651 125 7.6 142 8.6 1,753 121 6.9 151 8.6

RACE, SEX, AND HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY

 White, 16 years and over ........................................................ 100,589 12,535 12.5 13,849 13.8 101,340 12,381 12.2 13,657 13.5

 Men ....................................................................................... 52,827 7,378 14.0 8,016 15.2 53,432 7,260 13.6 7,854 14.7

 Women ................................................................................. 47,762 5,157 10.8 5,834 12.2 47,908 5,121 10.7 5,803 12.1

 Black or African American, 16 years and over ....................... 13,928 2,298 16.5 2,540 18.2 14,090 2,130 15.1 2,355 16.7

 Men ....................................................................................... 6,302 1,153 18.3 1,249 19.8 6,409 1,085 16.9 1,185 18.5

 Women ................................................................................. 7,626 1,145 15.0 1,291 16.9 7,681 1,045 13.6 1,170 15.2

 Asian, 16 years and over ........................................................ 5,096 581 11.4 659 12.9 5,280 603 11.4 670 12.7

 Men ....................................................................................... 2,699 296 11.0 346 12.8 2,815 328 11.7 371 13.2

 Women ................................................................................. 2,397 285 11.9 313 13.1 2,465 275 11.1 299 12.1

 Hispanic or Latino, 16 years and over .................................... 16,068 1,712 10.7 1,913 11.9 16,533 1,676 10.1 1,888 11.4

 Men ....................................................................................... 9,567 1,050 11.0 1,160 12.1 9,857 1,016 10.3 1,130 11.5

 Women ................................................................................. 6,501 662 10.2 753 11.6 6,676 661 9.9 758 11.4

FULL- OR PART-TIME STATUS3

 Full-time workers .................................................................... 100,302 14,263 14.2 15,732 15.7 101,224 14,029 13.9 15,463 15.3

 Part-time workers ................................................................... 21,809 1,479 6.8 1,679 7.7 22,047 1,406 6.4 1,587 7.2

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. 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 2004, 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

2003 2004

Total

Members

of

unions1

Represented

 by

unions2

Nonunion Total

Members

of

unions1

Represented

 by

unions2

Nonunion

AGE AND SEX

 Total, 16 years and over .............................................. $620 $760 $755 $599 $638 $781 $776 $612

 16 to 24 years ............................................................. 387 497 494 381 390 498 494 385

 25 years and over ....................................................... 662 774 770 636 683 798 793 656

 25 to 34 years ............................................................ 594 707 701 580 604 724 717 590

 35 to 44 years ............................................................ 687 787 783 665 713 813 808 690

 45 to 54 years ............................................................ 723 812 807 695 743 834 831 718

 55 to 64 years ............................................................ 708 797 798 678 725 835 835 693

 65 years and over ...................................................... 516 619 624 504 560 728 744 520

 Men, 16 years and over .............................................. 695 805 802 667 713 829 828 685

 16 to 24 years ............................................................ 398 498 493 392 400 504 496 395

 25 years and over ...................................................... 744 821 821 724 762 846 846 743

 25 to 34 years ........................................................... 628 737 732 613 639 751 748 620

 35 to 44 years ........................................................... 775 841 839 759 804 868 865 787

 45 to 54 years ........................................................... 834 865 865 822 857 878 881 847

 55 to 64 years ........................................................... 827 834 842 821 843 870 877 829

 65 years and over ..................................................... 612 713 720 603 641 753 776 620

 Women, 16 years and over ........................................ 552 696 691 523 573 723 719 541

 16 to 24 years ............................................................ 371 495 494 366 375 487 491 370

 25 years and over ...................................................... 584 709 704 562 599 733 730 580

 25 to 34 years ........................................................... 546 661 657 525 561 678 665 541

 35 to 44 years ........................................................... 590 706 703 574 608 735 733 590

 45 to 54 years ........................................................... 609 736 731 589 625 758 755 604

 55 to 64 years ........................................................... 601 748 743 576 615 767 767 592

 65 years and over ..................................................... 435 517 531 422 478 687 733 455

RACE, SEX, AND HISPANIC

OR LATINO ETHNICITY

 White, 16 years and over ............................................ 636 779 774 612 657 808 802 626

 Men ........................................................................... 715 827 825 688 732 855 854 704

 Women ..................................................................... 567 711 707 539 584 738 734 557

 Black or African American, 16 years and over ........... 514 665 654 491 525 656 651 507

 Men ........................................................................... 555 693 687 518 569 679 679 534

 Women ..................................................................... 491 633 622 467 505 629 621 490

 Asian, 16 years and over ............................................ 693 759 760 681 708 765 774 691

 Men ........................................................................... 772 783 775 771 802 775 786 809

 Women ..................................................................... 598 710 723 587 613 756 762 594

 Hispanic or Latino, 16 years and over ........................ 440 632 622 419 456 679 670 428

 Men ........................................................................... 464 664 652 437 480 697 690 455

 Women ..................................................................... 410 586 584 394 419 623 616 401

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 2004, 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

2003 2004

Total

employed

Members of

unions1

Represented

 by unions2

Total

employed

Members of

unions1

Represented

 by unions2

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

OCCUPATION

Management, professional, and related occupations ............... 40,883 5,331 13.0 6,130 15.0 41,451 5,418 13.1 6,256 15.1

 Management, business, and financial operations

 occupations ....................................................................... 15,465 727 4.7 882 5.7 15,758 732 4.6 895 5.7

 Management occupations ................................................ 10,713 436 4.1 546 5.1 10,796 441 4.1 553 5.1

 Business and financial operations occupations ................ 4,753 291 6.1 336 7.1 4,962 291 5.9 342 6.9

 Professional and related occupations ................................... 25,418 4,604 18.1 5,248 20.6 25,693 4,686 18.2 5,361 20.9

 Computer and mathematical occupations ........................ 2,947 154 5.2 197 6.7 2,962 128 4.3 171 5.8

 Architecture and engineering occupations ....................... 2,592 202 7.8 240 9.2 2,597 209 8.0 246 9.5

 Life, physical, and social science occupations ................. 1,203 108 9.0 136 11.3 1,204 106 8.8 129 10.7

 Community and social services occupations .................... 2,118 351 16.6 395 18.6 2,132 370 17.4 422 19.8

 Legal occupations ............................................................. 1,134 54 4.8 65 5.7 1,216 75 6.2 92 7.6

 Education, training, and library occupations ..................... 7,584 2,861 37.7 3,207 42.3 7,636 2,874 37.6 3,235 42.4

 Arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media

 occupations ................................................................... 1,879 140 7.5 157 8.4 1,894 162 8.6 184 9.7

 Healthcare practitioner and technical occupations ........... 5,961 733 12.3 853 14.3 6,052 762 12.6 882 14.6

Service occupations ................................................................. 20,183 2,318 11.5 2,562 12.7 20,724 2,371 11.4 2,552 12.3

 Healthcare support occupations ........................................... 2,824 312 11.0 341 12.1 2,791 290 10.4 315 11.3

 Protective service occupations ............................................. 2,699 974 36.1 1,038 38.5 2,840 1,059 37.3 1,118 39.4

 Food preparation and serving related occupations .............. 7,150 292 4.1 347 4.9 7,164 294 4.1 337 4.7

 Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance

 occupations ....................................................................... 4,426 490 11.1 550 12.4 4,597 490 10.7 529 11.5

 Personal care and service occupations ................................ 3,084 251 8.1 286 9.3 3,331 238 7.1 254 7.6

Sales and office occupations .................................................... 32,323 2,642 8.2 2,974 9.2 32,322 2,493 7.7 2,780 8.6

 Sales and related occupations ............................................. 13,378 533 4.0 599 4.5 13,527 488 3.6 548 4.1

 Office and administrative support occupations ..................... 18,945 2,109 11.1 2,375 12.5 18,795 2,005 10.7 2,232 11.9

Natural resources, construction, and maintenance

 occupations ........................................................................... 11,894 2,288 19.2 2,409 20.3 12,081 2,222 18.4 2,343 19.4

 Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations ........................... 921 33 3.5 38 4.1 862 27 3.1 34 3.9

 Construction and extraction occupations .............................. 6,412 1,394 21.7 1,457 22.7 6,680 1,312 19.6 1,370 20.5

 Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations ............... 4,560 862 18.9 913 20.0 4,540 883 19.4 939 20.7

Production, transportation, and material moving

 occupations ........................................................................... 17,074 3,196 18.7 3,374 19.8 16,976 2,968 17.5 3,156 18.6

 Production occupations ........................................................ 9,261 1,624 17.5 1,710 18.5 9,085 1,485 16.3 1,582 17.4

 Transportation and material moving occupations ................. 7,814 1,572 20.1 1,664 21.3 7,891 1,483 18.8 1,574 20.0

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

2003 2004

Total

employed

Members of

unions1

Represented

 by unions2

Total

employed

Members of

unions1

Represented

 by unions2

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

INDUSTRY

Private sector ............................................................................ 102,648 8,452 8.2 9,264 9.0 103,584 8,205 7.9 8,956 8.6

 Agriculture and related industries ........................................... 1,089 17 1.6 23 2.1 1,023 23 2.2 30 2.9

 Nonagricultural industries ....................................................... 101,559 8,435 8.3 9,241 9.1 102,560 8,182 8.0 8,926 8.7

 Mining .................................................................................. 504 46 9.1 53 10.5 496 57 11.4 58 11.7

 Construction ........................................................................ 7,126 1,139 16.0 1,188 16.7 7,550 1,110 14.7 1,162 15.4

 Manufacturing ...................................................................... 16,130 2,173 13.5 2,314 14.3 15,754 2,036 12.9 2,183 13.9

 Durable goods ................................................................. 10,049 1,411 14.0 1,497 14.9 9,885 1,316 13.3 1,407 14.2

 Nondurable goods ........................................................... 6,081 762 12.5 817 13.4 5,869 720 12.3 776 13.2

 Wholesale and retail trade ................................................... 18,343 1,130 6.2 1,210 6.6 18,754 1,028 5.5 1,107 5.9

 Wholesale trade ............................................................... 3,878 197 5.1 213 5.5 4,083 189 4.6 214 5.2

 Retail trade ...................................................................... 14,466 933 6.4 997 6.9 14,671 839 5.7 893 6.1

 Transportation and utilities .................................................. 4,942 1,294 26.2 1,350 27.3 4,893 1,218 24.9 1,287 26.3

 Transportation and warehousing ..................................... 4,081 1,051 25.8 1,094 26.8 4,043 976 24.2 1,031 25.5

 Utilities ............................................................................. 861 243 28.2 256 29.8 850 241 28.4 256 30.1

 Information3 ......................................................................... 3,297 448 13.6 481 14.6 3,058 433 14.2 470 15.4

 Publishing, except Internet .............................................. 781 58 7.4 60 7.7 778 52 6.7 59 7.6

 Motion pictures and sound recording .............................. 333 40 12.0 46 13.8 329 52 15.7 54 16.4

 Broadcasting, except Internet .......................................... 489 45 9.2 48 9.7 502 47 9.3 53 10.5

 Telecommunications ........................................................ 1,414 296 21.0 316 22.3 1,218 273 22.4 292 24.0

 Financial activities ............................................................... 8,360 176 2.1 237 2.8 8,490 171 2.0 209 2.5

 Finance and insurance .................................................... 6,246 98 1.6 142 2.3 6,301 96 1.5 124 2.0

 Finance ....................................................................... 4,079 63 1.5 96 2.3 4,111 56 1.4 73 1.8

 Insurance .................................................................... 2,167 35 1.6 47 2.1 2,191 40 1.8 51 2.3

 Real estate and rental and leasing .................................. 2,114 77 3.7 95 4.5 2,188 76 3.5 85 3.9

 Professional and business services .................................... 10,588 243 2.3 312 2.9 10,815 246 2.3 306 2.8

 Professional and technical services ................................ 6,146 88 1.4 125 2.0 6,263 70 1.1 102 1.6

 Management, administrative, and waste services ........... 4,443 155 3.5 187 4.2 4,552 177 3.9 204 4.5

 Education and health services ............................................. 16,635 1,324 8.0 1,560 9.4 16,870 1,405 8.3 1,593 9.4

 Educational services ........................................................ 3,062 371 12.1 452 14.8 3,243 421 13.0 475 14.6

 Health care and social assistance ................................... 13,573 953 7.0 1,108 8.2 13,627 984 7.2 1,119 8.2

 Leisure and hospitality ......................................................... 10,207 281 2.8 333 3.3 10,326 319 3.1 368 3.6

 Arts, entertainment, and recreation ................................. 1,764 95 5.4 111 6.3 1,777 114 6.4 123 6.9

 Accommodation and food services .................................. 8,443 187 2.2 222 2.6 8,548 205 2.4 245 2.9

 Accommodation ........................................................... 1,396 116 8.3 126 9.0 1,431 117 8.2 132 9.2

 Food services and drinking places .............................. 7,046 70 1.0 96 1.4 7,117 88 1.2 112 1.6

 Other services3 .................................................................... 5,425 181 3.3 203 3.7 5,556 158 2.8 183 3.3

 Other services, except private households ...................... 4,645 174 3.8 196 4.2 4,782 148 3.1 172 3.6

Public sector ............................................................................. 19,710 7,324 37.2 8,185 41.5 19,970 7,267 36.4 8,131 40.7

 Federal goverment ............................................................... 3,247 1,004 30.9 1,196 36.8 3,298 985 29.9 1,153 35.0

 State government ................................................................. 5,636 1,706 30.3 1,929 34.2 5,712 1,751 30.7 1,961 34.3

 Local government ................................................................. 10,827 4,614 42.6 5,060 46.7 10,961 4,532 41.3 5,017 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 2004, 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

2003 2004

Total

Members

of

unions1

Represented

 by

unions2

Nonunion Total

Members

of

unions1

Represented

 by

unions2

Nonunion

OCCUPATION

Management, professional, and related occupations ....................... $887 $896 $892 $886 $918 $921 $916 $918

 Management, business, and financial operations

 occupations ............................................................................... 961 985 994 959 965 963 972 965

 Management occupations ........................................................ 1,023 1,102 1,109 1,019 1,052 1,065 1,074 1,050

 Business and financial operations occupations ........................ 842 864 873 839 847 880 881 844

 Professional and related occupations ........................................... 845 885 879 833 883 915 907 875

 Computer and mathematical occupations ................................ 1,049 963 979 1,057 1,114 1,000 983 1,124

 Architecture and engineering occupations ............................... 1,053 1,037 1,028 1,058 1,098 1,080 1,090 1,100

 Life, physical, and social science occupations ......................... 891 944 945 876 957 949 977 955

 Community and social services occupations ............................ 686 848 832 650 707 827 817 666

 Legal occupations ..................................................................... 1,051 1,362 1,317 1,032 1,070 1,174 1,155 1,058

 Education, training, and library occupations ............................. 754 864 854 644 781 899 886 687

 Arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media

 occupations ........................................................................... 745 947 933 734 768 953 972 754

 Healthcare practitioner and technical occupations ................... 816 877 876 801 852 938 933 841

Service occupations ......................................................................... 403 606 596 382 411 655 647 389

 Healthcare support occupations ................................................... 400 452 452 394 407 458 462 401

 Protective service occupations ..................................................... 630 857 850 510 700 907 897 567

 Food preparation and serving related occupations ...................... 349 415 410 344 360 445 435 355

 Building and grounds cleaning and maintenance

 occupations ............................................................................... 390 503 498 372 385 515 513 368

 Personal care and service occupations ........................................ 391 532 520 381 402 522 518 394

Sales and office occupations ............................................................ 545 629 624 530 558 662 658 545

 Sales and related occupations ..................................................... 598 597 601 598 604 576 577 606

 Office and administrative support occupations ............................. 523 639 632 510 535 676 671 519

Natural resources, construction, and maintenance

 occupations ................................................................................... 608 851 843 558 621 867 858 581

 Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations ................................... 369 3 ( ) 3 ( ) 365 356 3 ( ) 3 ( ) 352

 Construction and extraction occupations ...................................... 599 $851 $840 531 604 $861 $852 555

 Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations ....................... 673 858 856 622 704 886 880 662

Production, transportation, and material moving

 occupations ................................................................................... 519 688 684 493 523 687 681 498

 Production occupations ................................................................ 519 670 665 495 526 681 674 503

 Transportation and material moving occupations ......................... 520 710 704 490 520 695 689 491

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

2003 2004

Total

Members

of

unions1

Represented

 by

unions2

Nonunion Total

Members

of

unions1

Represented

 by

unions2

Nonunion

INDUSTRY

Private sector .................................................................................... $603 $717 $713 $592 $615 $739 $734 $604

 Agriculture and related industries ................................................... 397 3 ( ) 3 ( ) 396 403 3 ( ) 3 ( ) 402

 Nonagricultural industries ............................................................... 605 $718 $713 595 617 $740 $735 606

 Mining .......................................................................................... 797 3 ( ) 783 799 874 905 911 865

 Construction ................................................................................ 615 $884 873 580 618 893 884 588

 Manufacturing .............................................................................. 637 689 689 626 662 694 692 654

 Durable goods ......................................................................... 668 714 712 655 691 707 706 687

 Nondurable goods ................................................................... 597 635 637 590 611 670 662 602

 Wholesale and retail trade ........................................................... 533 590 586 528 550 596 590 547

 Wholesale trade ....................................................................... 670 694 689 668 677 722 709 674

 Retail trade .............................................................................. 497 562 554 494 509 567 560 507

 Transportation and utilities .......................................................... 704 817 816 653 711 854 850 662

 Transportation and warehousing ............................................. 668 782 780 620 668 819 814 619

 Utilities ..................................................................................... 899 965 979 857 957 979 978 948

 Information4 ................................................................................. 776 868 862 758 828 893 887 808

 Publishing, except Internet ...................................................... 690 740 747 684 720 844 829 710

 Motion pictures and sound recording ...................................... 704 3 ( ) 3 ( ) 669 805 3 ( ) 3 ( ) 762

 Broadcasting, except Internet .................................................. 724 3 ( ) 3 ( ) 703 763 3 ( ) 3 ( ) 749

 Telecommunications ................................................................ 857 $877 $875 848 918 $910 $897 929

 Financial activities ....................................................................... 691 618 625 694 706 657 649 708

 Finance and insurance ............................................................ 728 607 623 732 738 636 629 740

 Finance ............................................................................... 726 614 640 730 735 606 616 737

 Insurance ............................................................................ 731 3 ( ) 3 ( ) 734 743 3 ( ) 3 ( ) 744

 Real estate and rental and leasing .......................................... 604 $642 $630 603 615 $677 $670 613

 Professional and business services ............................................ 692 699 691 692 709 679 694 710

 Professional and technical services ........................................ 885 897 911 884 927 940 937 927

 Management, administrative, and waste services ................... 486 640 617 482 478 607 606 470

 Education and health services ..................................................... 598 670 684 590 613 717 728 603

 Educational services ................................................................ 681 756 760 659 716 828 831 679

 Health care and social assistance ........................................... 582 627 639 577 595 656 671 588

 Leisure and hospitality ................................................................. 400 497 485 395 407 518 508 402

 Arts, entertainment, and recreation ......................................... 492 546 529 489 523 677 662 513

 Accommodation and food services .......................................... 385 478 470 381 391 477 473 387

 Accommodation ................................................................... 435 485 482 423 432 481 490 422

 Food services and drinking places ...................................... 371 467 456 369 378 467 422 377

 Other services4 ............................................................................ 515 726 709 510 528 749 750 521

 Other services, except private households .............................. 544 730 720 533 560 764 764 551

Public sector ..................................................................................... 728 801 795 656 751 832 827 683

 Federal goverment ....................................................................... 818 809 816 821 856 840 848 869

 State government ......................................................................... 702 764 759 652 725 788 781 681

 Local government ......................................................................... 709 814 803 606 731 844 834 627

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 2004, 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

2003 2004

Total

employed

Members of

unions1

Represented

by unions2

Total

employed

Members of

unions1

Represented

by unions2

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

Total

Percent

of

employed

 Alabama ..................................................................... 1,822 147 8.1 172 9.5 1,861 181 9.7 213 11.5

 Alaska ......................................................................... 265 59 22.3 65 24.6 268 54 20.1 60 22.4

 Arizona ....................................................................... 2,191 113 5.2 140 6.4 2,323 145 6.3 183 7.9

 Arkansas ..................................................................... 1,035 50 4.8 61 5.9 1,058 51 4.8 65 6.2

 California .................................................................... 14,350 2,414 16.8 2,647 18.4 14,414 2,385 16.5 2,588 18.0

 Colorado ..................................................................... 2,007 156 7.8 180 9.0 2,050 172 8.4 191 9.3

 Connecticut ................................................................. 1,489 229 15.4 244 16.4 1,539 235 15.3 256 16.6

 Delaware .................................................................... 366 42 11.4 46 12.5 373 46 12.4 49 13.2

 District of Columbia .................................................... 268 39 14.6 46 17.2 258 33 12.7 38 14.5

 Florida ......................................................................... 6,652 407 6.1 557 8.4 6,943 414 6.0 533 7.7

 Georgia ....................................................................... 3,703 249 6.7 298 8.0 3,773 242 6.4 282 7.5

 Hawaii ......................................................................... 511 122 23.8 127 24.8 533 126 23.7 132 24.8

 Idaho ........................................................................... 548 39 7.0 47 8.6 561 33 5.8 44 7.9

 Illinois .......................................................................... 5,399 967 17.9 1,003 18.6 5,410 908 16.8 971 17.9

 Indiana ........................................................................ 2,768 327 11.8 352 12.7 2,717 311 11.4 338 12.4

 Iowa ............................................................................ 1,365 157 11.5 196 14.4 1,345 141 10.5 171 12.7

 Kansas ........................................................................ 1,204 96 7.9 124 10.3 1,223 103 8.4 132 10.8

 Kentucky ..................................................................... 1,681 175 10.4 216 12.8 1,699 164 9.6 197 11.6

 Louisiana .................................................................... 1,685 109 6.5 132 7.9 1,697 129 7.6 157 9.3

 Maine .......................................................................... 567 73 12.8 81 14.3 564 64 11.3 74 13.2

 Maryland ..................................................................... 2,481 354 14.3 410 16.5 2,502 272 10.9 313 12.5

 Massachusetts ............................................................ 2,925 416 14.2 454 15.5 2,920 393 13.5 430 14.7

 Michigan ..................................................................... 4,188 919 21.9 968 23.1 4,305 930 21.6 966 22.4

 Minnesota ................................................................... 2,435 414 17.0 441 18.1 2,429 424 17.5 443 18.3

 Mississippi .................................................................. 1,117 55 5.0 73 6.6 1,108 53 4.8 70 6.3

 Missouri ...................................................................... 2,546 336 13.2 363 14.2 2,546 315 12.4 357 14.0

 Montana ...................................................................... 360 50 14.0 54 14.9 366 43 11.7 46 12.6

 Nebraska .................................................................... 819 64 7.9 87 10.6 831 69 8.3 83 10.0

 Nevada ....................................................................... 943 136 14.4 149 15.8 1,006 126 12.5 144 14.3

 New Hampshire .......................................................... 607 56 9.3 69 11.3 618 61 9.9 68 11.0

 New Jersey ................................................................. 3,777 737 19.5 801 21.2 3,769 745 19.8 813 21.6

 New Mexico ................................................................ 741 57 7.6 70 9.5 734 49 6.7 65 8.9

 New York .................................................................... 7,874 1,936 24.6 2,017 25.6 7,901 1,996 25.3 2,085 26.4

 North Carolina ............................................................ 3,576 111 3.1 135 3.8 3,549 97 2.7 127 3.6

 North Dakota .............................................................. 284 21 7.3 26 9.0 292 22 7.7 26 9.0

 Ohio ............................................................................ 5,100 850 16.7 923 18.1 4,998 759 15.2 820 16.4

 Oklahoma ................................................................... 1,406 96 6.8 111 7.9 1,402 86 6.1 100 7.1

 Oregon ........................................................................ 1,466 230 15.7 240 16.4 1,471 224 15.2 243 16.5

 Pennsylvania .............................................................. 5,261 794 15.1 847 16.1 5,298 793 15.0 842 15.9

 Rhode Island .............................................................. 494 84 17.0 86 17.5 487 79 16.3 83 17.0

 South Carolina ............................................................ 1,689 71 4.2 90 5.3 1,765 54 3.0 74 4.2

 South Dakota .............................................................. 353 19 5.4 23 6.4 347 21 6.0 27 7.7

 Tennessee .................................................................. 2,384 179 7.5 218 9.2 2,465 164 6.7 191 7.7

 Texas .......................................................................... 9,072 508 5.6 621 6.8 9,072 457 5.0 573 6.3

 Utah ............................................................................ 1,015 53 5.2 69 6.8 1,001 58 5.8 67 6.7

 Vermont ...................................................................... 281 27 9.7 33 11.7 291 29 9.8 33 11.4

 Virginia ........................................................................ 3,243 210 6.5 251 7.7 3,308 176 5.3 218 6.6

 Washington ................................................................. 2,539 502 19.7 531 20.9 2,645 510 19.3 536 20.3

 West Virginia .............................................................. 671 88 13.1 95 14.2 700 99 14.2 110 15.7

 Wisconsin ................................................................... 2,613 414 15.9 438 16.8 2,597 414 16.0 439 16.9

 Wyoming ..................................................................... 224 18 8.0 22 9.8 222 18 8.0 22 9.8

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.

 NOTE: Beginning in January 2004, 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.