Workers are voting to join unions at record high rates
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Workers are voting to join unions at the highest rate in 15 years, finds an analysis out this morning from the progressive Center for American Progress.
Why it matters: It's a reflection of increased grassroots momentum behind organizing — helped along by a strongly pro-worker National Labor Relations Board, under Biden appointee Jennifer Abruzzo.
Zoom in: Workers voted in favor of a union 74% of the time this year (through April) — a jump from 2019 when it was 69%.
- In 2023, there were 1,777 union elections — the highest number since 2010, when there were 1,942.
Zoom out: The NLRB has streamlined the rules around union elections — cutting the time between petition and voting.
- The agency also withdrew a Trump-era proposal that would have excluded private college and university student workers from unionizing — driving a wave of graduate student organizing. These elections tend to have very high win rates, a recent study from the Economic Policy Institute finds.
The intrigue: Unions are gaining ground with Republicans, as Axios' Andrew Solender reports.
- That's good news for union organizers wanting votes from as many workers as possible, but it's bad news for Democratic candidates that have historically been able to count on unions' support.
What to watch: Union certification is just one hurdle for organizers to clear — after receiving certification, workers must bargain for a contract with their employer.
- Workers at Starbucks, Amazon, and Trader Joe's — all part of the recent voting wave — haven't made it there yet.
