No need to panic. One year earlier, the union membership rate was 12.3%. In 1983, when the BLS started comparing such data, 20.1% of employees belonged to a trade union. In the mid-1950s, 35% of American workers were union members. These statistics show a weakened union landscape. Lance Compa, professor at the Cornell University Industrial Labor Relations School, had to acknowledge it. However, he quickly moderated saying that it was a cause for concern, not for panic. Indeed, “these figures are a slight shift down from last year.” The rate went from 12.3% in 2009 to 11.9% one year later. He added: “In the US, dozens of millions of employees simply cannot use collective bargaining procedures. The law forbids it. This is the case for executives, small directors, consultants, some farm workers, professors in private universities, PhD students taking on classes…”
a slight shift down from last year.” The rate went from 12.3% in 2009 to 11.9% one year later. He added: “In the US, dozens of millions of employees simply cannot use collective bargaining procedures. The law forbids it. This is the case for executives, small directors, consultants, some farm workers, professors in private universities, PhD students taking on classes…”
According to the professor, these legal obstacles help put the low level of union membership into perspective. He mentioned
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