Private sector union membership shrinks

[The Northerner]

Source: Associated Press

WASHINGTON – The number of union workers employed by the government for the first time outnumbered union ranks in the private sector last year, the result of massive layoffs that plunged the rate of private sector union membership to a record low.

Local, state and government workers made up 51.5 percent of all union members in 2009, up from 48.7 percent a year ago, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Friday.

Overall, union membership declined by 771,000 workers, to 15.3 million. But with the number of nonunion workers also shrinking, the rate of union membership fell only slightly to 12.3 percent of all workers from 12.4 percent in 2008.

Private sector union membership plummeted by 10 percent, while government unions posted slight gains.



Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100122/ap_on_bi_ge/us_union_membership

[NeoConsSuck]

1. For anyone young

and just entering the workforce, you have my pity. The next 40 years are going to be a bitch for the worker bees.

[boppers]

2. Been dropping for 50 years....

From:
http://www.bls.gov/news.release/union2.nr0.htm

"Six states had union membership rates below 5.0 percent in 2009, with
North Carolina having the lowest rate (3.1 percent). The next lowest
rates were recorded in Arkansas (4.2 percent), South Carolina (4.5
percent), Georgia (4.6 percent), Virginia (4.7 percent), and Mississi-
ppi (4.8 percent). Four states had union membership rates over 20.0
percent in 2009--New York (25.2 percent), Hawaii (23.5 percent), Alaska
(22.3 percent), and Washington (20.2 percent)."

[natetk]

3. It's a shame.

I am a Republican(family is a Democrat), but I do think we need unions. I hate that all our jobs are being out sourced, and our wages are going down. We do need unions to help Americans make an actual living with health care and all. With out a middle class the wealthier folks are not going to be able to sell their stuff; in addition, I cannot stand places like Walmart that sell stuff like mugs that say proud to be an american yet it was made in china. So in the future I do hope things get better for unions, and I hope they do get rid of, "Right to Work". I had a cousin lose her job in Utah after working 13 years with them for no reason. Anyways that's my 2 cents.

[Mithreal]

6. You definitely sound like someone with whom Progressives share common ground.

[xsquid]

11. As a retired chief union steward I will say that if

unions would stay on track the right to work states would not matter. As it was out of all workers a very small percentage was union members and the common reason was "they do not support me why should I support them?". I filed grievances on many "money" issues and the regional office where they were decided traded every single one to management for something THEY wanted that did not benefit us at all. The state rep was frustrated also. The only grievances we ever recieved back with a decision were non pay ones. If the outfit would have been ran properly there would have been more members. I'm proud I at least went toe to toe with management and did my job, did manage to help people quite a bit locally whether they were members or not, (have a plaque on the wall) but in many instances unions are not what they once were, they are themselves to blame for some member losses. OK, we did have the benefit of being able to get in the unions nightclub 6 hours away for free. (sarcasm)

[SoapBox]

4. As related to the SCOTUS campaign finance case...

So when this was announced, for example NPR, there were many times that I heard
"...Unions and corporations...", with unions being mentioned first.

BUT...union membership has shrunk, shrunk, shrunk, along with their money (not mentioned by NPR).

YET...corporations have GROWN into worldwide bazillion dollar monsters (nor mentioned by NPR).

Gee...guess who is going to win when it comes to putting a candidate into office?

This should end up being the one singular worst SCOTUS decision (oh, I suppose they can do worse yet!) in my life time.

[Mithreal]

7. NPR lost its way a long time ago. I used to listen all the time.

Before I stopped entirely, I asked them several times to stop acting like Cheney/Bush mouthpieces. There were always good shows though that stayed true but that wasn't enough to prevent me from losing patience. I switched over to Progressive Radio and rarely looked back. I did check in from time to time. My favorite show for years was Diane Rehm but she started using rightwing think tanks so often and rarely countered the spin that I called it quits. She is still at it, though her show is a quality one, just not my thing. It is hard to say whether I left them first or they left me though, because as I grew in my understanding, NPR became more and more like rightwing propaganda. If I remember correctly, Bush ruined it, but many were complicit after the fact.

http://streamingradioguide.com/streaming-radio-shows.php?sformat=2

[scentopine]

5. When unions were the strongest, so was American middle class

they told us killing the unions would bring new wealth and prosperity to the middle class. And so many people believed it.

Thanks to right wing radio screaming 24/7 about the unions and American's propensity for slashing their own throats.

How's the American auto business since unions were crushed and jobs sent to Mexico, China, India- that worked out well didn't it?

Fucking christ; we are truly in a golden age for fascism.

[Mithreal]

9. Ironic it is that rightwingers claim to love America but seem never to have understood it.

I have meant many a Pre-Reagan era thinking Republican I could find common ground with but their party left them and they sorely need to take it back.

[onethatcares]

8. and when you realize what began the Union movement in this country

it seems we are on our way back to the worst of times.

Hell, I worked for a man that had his fingers and hands broken by police paid by companies to break up strikes and stop the rabblerousers.

Now we have folks with lily white hands that never touch more than a pen telling us our skills aren't worth a damn.

Our kids are gonna love us 20 years from now.

[readmoreoften]

10. This is because the NLRB has reclassified everyone out of the working class.

Nurses aren't workers because they do shift paperwork for other nurses, so they are management.
Professors aren't workers (Yeshiva decision 1980) because they are part of the program's "management"
Graduate student teachers aren't workers because they are "students".

Everyone has been restructured as an assistant assistant assistant manager's assistant in order to reclassify the working class as management, denying workers the right to unionize in the first place.

[David__77]

12. Card check now!!!!

It is an outrage that the Democrats goad progressives into believing these things will be acted on when they're out of power. Why has there been no vote!?

[Imajika]

13. This bodes very badly for unions

Now most union workers are government workers?

And one of the only sectors of the economy that is growing through this recession is the public sector (ie, government)?

This opens the door further to the demonization of unions. The anti government types (whom are also anti-union) will say Democrats just support the union bosses by growing government.

If these stats are true, that is most certainly going to be their next line of attack.

[Johnny Harpo]

14. Unemployment Goes Up..Union Membership Shrinks..

thats a tough one to figure out...Not.

[Haole Girl]

15. I guess it's just math

Still seems odd to me that the Unions haven't done a better job at recruiting. Especially since health care is soaring and workers are subjected to more work with less pay.

:crazy:

[New Dawn]

16. We need the Employee Free Choice Act immediately.

http://www.aflcio.org/joinaunion/voiceatwork/efca/