Wisconsin saw an increase in the number of workers who are members of a union in 2023, according to annual data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. In total, 205,000 workers are union members in the state, according to the BLS data, up from 187,000 in 2022. The increase of 9.6% was the
Wisconsin saw an increase in the number of workers who are members of a union in 2023, according to annual data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
In total, 205,000 workers are union members in the state, according to the BLS data, up from 187,000 in 2022. The increase of 9.6% was the 13th largest gain in the country this past year.
Union members now make up 7.4% of Wisconsin’s total workforce, up from 7% a year ago. The 0.4 percentage point increase was the 17th largest jump in the country.
Wisconsin also saw an uptick in the number of workers represented by a union from 212,000 to 232,000. The increase of 18,000 in union membership accounts for most of the 20,000 worker increase in representation.
The increase in membership is the first in Wisconsin since 2020. Measured by the number of new members, it is the largest year-over-year change since 2013.
Union membership in Wisconsin has trended down over the past two decades but moved own sharply in 2015 with the implementation of right-to-work legislation.
[caption id="attachment_583460" align="aligncenter" width="796"] Wisconsin union membership and representation as a percentage of total number of people employed in the state. Source; U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics[/caption]
Nationally, the total number of union members grew from 14.29 million to 14.42 million. As a percentage of all workers, membership decreased from 10.1% to 10%.
Seven states saw a more than 1 percentage point increase in their rate of union membership across all workers. Hawaii and Vermont led the list with increases of 2.2 points each. Connecticut, Mississippi, Oklahoma, New Jersey and Nevada also topped 1 point.
Another seven states saw decreases of more than 1 percentage point, led by Rhode Island, which was down 3.8 points. Washington, Oregon, New Mexico, Arizona, Alaska and Michigan all saw decreases of 1 to 1.5 points.
Among other nearby states, Indiana saw a 0.6 point increase and Iowa was up 0.2 points. Illinois was down 0.3 points, Minnesota was down 0.9 and Michigan decreased 1.2 points.
Nationally, industries seeing the strongest gains in union membership included wholesale trade, transportation and warehousing, and telecommunications.
Industries with declines in union membership included motion pictures and sound recording, mining and quarrying, agriculture, broadcasting, publishing and construction.
