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IT PAYS TO BE UNION! Union membership brings many benefits to working people. One of the major benefits includes weekly earnings. The data below show that union workers, on average, made $161 or 27% more per week than nonunion workers in 2003. Furthermore, when breaking it down to both industries and occupational categories, the union difference becomes even clearer. WEEKLY EARNINGS ADVANTAGE FOR UNION MEMBERS, 2003
Full-Time Wage and Salary Workers' Median Weekly Earnings | Union | Non Union | Union
Weekly Advantage | % Difference | All Workers 16 and Over | $760 | $599 | $161 | 27% | Race & Gender White, 16 years & over | $779 | $612 | $167 | 27% | Men | $827 | $688 | $139 | 20% | Women | $711 | $539 | $172 | 32% | Black, 16 years & over | $665 | $491 | $174 | 35% | Men | $693 | $518 | $175 | 34% | Women | $633 | $467 | $166 | 36% | Hispanic or Latino, 16 years
& over | $632 | $419 | $213 | 51% | Men | $663 | $437 | $226 | 52% | Women | $586 | $394 | $192 | 49% | Occupational Breakdown | | | | | Management, professional &
related occupations | $896 | $886 | $10 | 1% | Professional & related
occupations | $885 | $833 | $52 | 6% | Services occupations | $606 | $382 | $224 | 59% | Office & administrative support occupations | $639 | $530 | $109 | 21% | Natural resources, construction & maintenance occupations | $851 | $558 | $293 | 53% | Production, transportation
& material moving occupations | $688 | $493 | $195 | $40% | Industry Breakdown | | | | | Construction | $884 | $580 | $304 | 52% | Durable Goods Manufacturing | $714 | $655 | $59 | 9% | Nondurable Goods Manufacturing | $635 | $590 | $45 | 8% | Transportation & Warehousing | $782 | $620 | $162 | 26% | Government | $809 | $821 | ($12) | -1% |
Note: In addition to the earnings benefits gained from being unionized, some of the union/nonunion differences may be due to factors such as employee skill level, region of the country, and size of the employer. Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, "Union Members in 2003," January 2004.
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