2002 Union Members — 2003-02-25

In 2002, 13.2 percent of wage and salary workers were union members, down from 13.4 percent (as revised) in 2001, the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. The number of persons belonging to a union fell by 280,000 over the year to 16.1 million in 2002. The union mem- bership 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 2002 data are: --The union membership rate for blacks was unchanged and remained higher than the rates for either whites or Hispanics. --Nearly 4 in 10 government workers were union members in 2002, compared with less than 1 in 10 workers in private-sector industries. The trans- portation industry had the highest private-sector rate of unionization. --Nearly two-fifths of workers in protective service occupations were union members in 2002. Protective service occupations include fire- fighters and police officers.