President Joe Biden has touted his administration as being pro-organized labor and Performing Labor Sec. Julie Su has backed up her boss on that assertion.
Su was in Milwaukee in August to acknowledge the Biden administration’s designating town a “workforce hub” permitting officers to work with federal companies to take away lead pipes. Whereas right here, Su additionally talked about the necessity to enhance coaching alternatives for the constructing trades.
Throughout a press convention she mentioned:
“4-hundred thousand staff are actually in a union that weren’t in a union when (Biden) turned president.”
That feels like a variety of new union members, however is that correct?
Actually? 400,000 new union staff?
After the go to, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reached out to Su’s workplace to get extra proof for the declare they usually responded with info from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Based mostly on the BLS info, the variety of staff (age 16 and older) who’re members of a union went from 14,012,000 in 2021, when Biden took workplace, to 14,424,000 in 2023.
This yr’s knowledge has not been launched, however evaluating these numbers, it reveals union membership elevated by about 412,000.
So the determine Su cited is right.
However wait, there’s extra (context)
This can be a declare wherein context is vital.
Su and the Biden administration try to indicate that staff and unions are benefiting – and rising – on account of present insurance policies.
However the improve of union staff follows extra of an trade restoration sample from the 2020 coronavirus pandemic which impacted workforces throughout all sectors. Industries, akin to tourism, have been recovering steadily throughout these final 4 years.
The identical knowledge set from BLS reveals that union membership isn’t again at pre-pandemic ranges.
In 2019, in the course of the Donald Trump administration, there have been 14,574,000 union members. Roughly 162,000 greater than the latest knowledge.
Over the past 10 years, union membership was at its highest in 2017 at 14,744,00 – some 300,000 union members greater than now.
Since 2013, the bottom variety of union members have been in 2020 and 2021 – within the midst of the pandemic – at 14,012,000 and 14,285,000 respectively.
Our ruling
Su mentioned “400,000 staff are actually in a union that weren’t in a union when (Biden) turned president.”
That determine is right nevertheless it doesn’t point out that the rise is extra indicative of unions — and the whole workforce — recovering from the pandemic than to any particular coverage.
Our definition of Principally True is, “the assertion is correct however wants clarification or further info.” That matches right here.
