Regional trends, Monthly Labor Review Online, June 1999

In 1998, 13.9 percent of all employed nonagricultural wage and salary workers in the United States were union members, according to results from the Current Population Survey. Nineteen States had membership rates above the national average, while 30 States and the District of Columbia had lower rates.

Hawaii, New Jersey, and New York had the highest rates of union membership, all 22 percent or higher. These States, along with Michigan, have been among the five most unionized States since at least 1995. Mississippi, North Carolina, and South Carolina had the lowest rates (between 4.2 and 5.6 percent), as they have for the past 4 years.

California (2.2 million), New York (1.9 million), and Illinois (1.0 million) were the States with the greatest number of union members. More than half the union members in the United States lived in seven States, although those States accounted for only 38 percent of nonagricultural wage and salary employment nationally.

Percent of nonagricultural wage-and-salary worker union members, by State, 1998 annual averages

United States......	13.9	Missouri..............	13.7
Alabama...................	9.7	Montana..............	13.9
Alaska.......................	20.4	Nebraska..............	10.3
Arizona.....................	6.5	Nevada.................	17.0
Arkansas..................	6.2	New Hampshire	11.0
California..................	16.1	New Jersey..........	22.0
Colorado...................	9.1	New Mexico........	9.4
Connecticut..............	17.5	New York.............	25.4
Delaware...................	13.6	North Carolina....	4.2
District of Columbia	13.5	North Dakota......	9.1
Florida.......................	6.7	Ohio......................	19.0
Georgia......................	7.4	Oklahoma.............	8.6
Hawaii.......................	26.5	Oregon.................	16.1

Idaho.........................	7.8	Pennsylvania......	16.3
Illinois.......................	18.9	Rhode Island.......	19.0
Indiana......................	16.2	South Carolina....	4.5
Iowa...........................	12.5	South Dakota......	6.4
Kansas......................	7.9	Tennessee...........	7.9
Kentucky..................	13.1	Texas....................	5.9
Louisiana..................	7.8	Utah......................	6.8
Maine........................	12.6	Vermont...............	9.4
Maryland..................	14.1	Virginia.................	6.8
Massachusetts........	15.9	Washington........	21.2
Michigan..................	21.6	West Virginia......	12.6
Minnesota................	18.8	Wisconsin...........	18.7
Mississippi...............	5.6	Wyoming.............	9.6

Current Population Survey data for 1998 show considerable variation in multiple jobholding rates around the national average of 6 percent, as well as some rather clear geographic patterns. Of the 11 States with the highest rates, 6 are located in the Midwest and 4 are in the West. Of the 10 States with the lowest rates, 6 are in the South and 3 are in the Northeast. Similar patterns were observed in recent years.

Overall, 28 States and the District of Columbia had multiple jobholding rates above the U.S. average, while 19 States had lower rates. North Dakota registered the highest rate, 10.8 percent. Montana and Minnesota also had rates above 10 percent. In fact, 1998 was the fifth consecutive year that Minnesota has had a double-digit multiple jobholding rate. Louisiana recorded the lowest rate, 3.8 percent, with Mississippi, New York, North Carolina, and Texas also having rates below 5 percent. This marks the third time in the last 4 years that Louisiana has had the lowest multiple jobholding rate of all the States.

Montana and Alaska had the largest increases in multiple jobholding from the prior year, 0.9 percentage point. The largest over-the-year declines were recorded in Arkansas and Nebraska, –1.6 and –1.5 percentage points, respectively. The U.S. rate edged down by 0.1 percentage point from 1997, and has ranged from 5.9 to 6.2 percent in the past 5 years.