Tripling US union membership would shift $1.2tn to workers annually – report
News Source
•Wed, 15 Jul 2026 14:37:02 GMT
📰 What Happened
A new report from the Economic Policy Institute found that tripling union membership in the US would lead to a 14.5% raise for the median worker, shifting $1.2 trillion to workers annually and significantly narrowing racial wage gaps. Union density in the US has fallen from over 30% in the 1950s to just 10% in 2025.
🔍 The Backstory
Union density in the US has been in steady decline since the 1960s, dropping from 30% in the 1950s to 22.2% in the 1980s and now to 10% in 2025. Despite this, public approval of labor unions has remained high, with over 68% of Americans viewing unions favorably in 2025. More than 50 million US workers would join a union if they could. The EPI report notes that the decline in union density has come amid aggressive union busting by corporations and new anti-union laws. Since 1979, worker productivity has grown 2.7 times faster than pay increases. The correlation between declining union density and rising wealth and income inequality is well documented. The report argues that reversing the decline of unions would not only boost wages but also narrow racial pay gaps, as unionized workplaces tend to have more equitable pay structures.
🎯 Why It Matters
The report provides a stark quantification of what the decline of organized labor has cost American workers — $1.2 trillion annually in lost wages. As the US heads into a midterm election cycle, the report could energize labor organizing efforts and put pressure on politicians to support the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act and other pro-union legislation. The findings also challenge the narrative that unions are no longer relevant in a modern economy.
A new report from the Economic Policy Institute found that tripling union membership in the US would lead to a 14.5% raise for the median worker, shifting $1.2 trillion to workers annually and significantly narrowing racial wage gaps. Union density in the US has fallen from over 30% in the 1950s to just 10% in 2025.
Union density in the US has been in steady decline since the 1960s, dropping from 30% in the 1950s to 22.2% in the 1980s and now to 10% in 2025. Despite this, public approval of labor unions has remained high, with over 68% of Americans viewing unions favorably in 2025. More than 50 million US workers would join a union if they could. The EPI report notes that the decline in union density has come amid aggressive union busting by corporations and new anti-union laws. Since 1979, worker productivity has grown 2.7 times faster than pay increases. The correlation between declining union density and rising wealth and income inequality is well documented. The report argues that reversing the decline of unions would not only boost wages but also narrow racial pay gaps, as unionized workplaces tend to have more equitable pay structures.
The report provides a stark quantification of what the decline of organized labor has cost American workers — $1.2 trillion annually in lost wages. As the US heads into a midterm election cycle, the report could energize labor organizing efforts and put pressure on politicians to support the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act and other pro-union legislation. The findings also challenge the narrative that unions are no longer relevant in a modern economy.