August 2006

Table 1—Unionization rates in first half of 2005 and 2006

At 13.8 million, average paid employment (employees) during the first half of 2006 was 312,000 higher than during the same period a year earlier. On the other hand, union membership increased by only 62,000 to 4.1 million. As a result, the unionization rate (density) fell from 30.0% to 29.7%.

Both men and women registered decreases in unionization rates, with the decline for men being larger. At 30.1%, the women's rate in 2006 continued to exceed the rate for men (29.4%).

Unionization rose slightly in the public sector (to 71.4%) and fell in the private sector (to 17.0%).

Newfoundland and Labrador, Quebec, Saskatchewan and Alberta recorded rate increases, with the other six provinces showing declines (Chart A).

The rate fell from 31.5% to 31.2% for full-time workers and remained virtually unchanged for part-time workers (23.2%).

The unionization rate for permanent employees fell to 30.2%, but rose to 26.3% for those in non-permanent jobs. The rate fell in workplaces with 20 to 99 employees, and in those with over 500; it remained unchanged in those with 100 to 500 employees, but rose in those with less than 20.

Unionization rose in 7 of the 16 major industry groups: natural resources, utilities, construction, transportation and warehousing, education, health care and social assistance, and other services. All other industry groups registered declines (Chart B).

Among the 10 major occupational groups, unionization rose in 4: health, social and public service; culture and recreation; and trades, transport and equipment operation. The rest showed declines (Chart C).

The number of employees who were not union members but covered by a collective agreement averaged 316,000, up slightly from 306,000 a year earlier (see Akyeampong 2000 for a description of this group).

Table 1—Union membership and coverage by selected characteristics
Table 1—Union membership and coverage by selected characteristics (concluded)

Table 2—2005 annual averages

Approximately 4.1 million (29.8%) employees belonged to a union in 2005. An additional 310,000 (2.2%) were covered by a collective agreement.

Those in the public sector—government, Crown corporations, and publicly funded schools or hospitals—were four times as likely as their private-sector counterparts to belong to a union (71.0% versus 17.5%).

Almost 1 in 3 full-time employees belonged to a union, compared with about 1 in 4 part-time. Also, almost 1 in 3 permanent employees was a union member, compared with 1 in 4 non-permanent.

High unionization rates were found among employees aged 45 to 54 (39.4%); among those with a university degree (34.2%), or a postsecondary certificate or diploma (33.6%); in Quebec (36.7%), and Newfoundland and Labrador (35.7%); in public administration (67.7%), educational services (67.6%), and utilities (66.8%); and in health care occupations (53.6%).

Low unionization rates were recorded among 15 to 24 year-olds (13.8%); in Alberta (21.6%); in agriculture (5.0%) and professional, scientific and technical services (5.3%); and in management occupations (8.5%).

Differences between the sexes

For the second year in a row, the unionization rate for women in 2005 surpassed that of men (29.9% versus 29.7%).

Among men, part-time employees had a much lower rate than full-time (18.3% versus 31.0%). Among women, the gap was narrower (25.1% versus 31.5%).

The unionization rate of women in the public sector (72.5%) exceeded that of men (68.7%), reflecting women's presence in public administration, and in teaching and health positions. However, in the private sector, only 12.8% were unionized, compared with 21.4% of men. The lower rate among women reflected their predominance in sales and several service occupations.

A higher-than-average rate was recorded among men with a postsecondary certificate or diploma (33.7%). For women, the highest rate was among those with a university degree (39.7%), reflecting unionization in occupations such as health care and teaching.

Among those in permanent positions, the rate for men was identical to that for women (30.6%). Among those in non-permanent positions, women were more unionized than men (25.6% versus 23.0%).

Table 2A—Union membership and coverage by sex and selected characteristics, 2005
Table 2A—Union membership and coverage by sex and selected characteristics, 2005 (continued)
Table 2A—Union membership and coverage by sex and selected characteristics, 2005 (continued)
Table 2A—Union membership and coverage by sex and selected characteristics, 2005 (continued)
Table 2A—Union membership and coverage by sex and selected characteristics, 2005 (continued)
Table 2A—Union membership and coverage by sex and selected characteristics, 2005 (concluded)

Table 2B—Union membership and coverage by province and selected characteristics, 2005
Table 2B—Union membership and coverage by province and selected characteristics, 2005 (continued)
Table 2B—Union membership and coverage by province and selected characteristics, 2005 (continued)
Table 2B—Union membership and coverage by province and selected characteristics, 2005 (continued)
Table 2B—Union membership and coverage by province and selected characteristics, 2005 (continued)
Table 2B—Union membership and coverage by province and selected characteristics, 2005 (continued)
Table 2B—Union membership and coverage by province and selected characteristics, 2005 (continued)
Table 2B—Union membership and coverage by province and selected characteristics, 2005 (continued)
Table 2B—Union membership and coverage by province and selected characteristics, 2005 (continued)
Table 2B—Union membership and coverage by province and selected characteristics, 2005 (concluded)

Table 3—Average earnings and usual hours

Unionized jobs generally provide higher earnings than non-unionized ones. However, factors other than collective bargaining provisions play a role as well. These include varying distributions of unionized employees by age, sex, job tenure, industry, occupation, firm size, and geographical location.

Although these factors have not been examined, it is clear that unionized workers and jobs tend to have certain characteristics that are associated with higher earnings. For example, union density is higher among older workers, those with higher education, those with long tenure, and those in larger workplaces. Although differences in earnings and non-wage benefits cannot be attributed solely to union status (Akyeampong 2002), the union wage premium (after adjusting for employee and workplace characteristics) has been estimated at 7.7% (Fang and Verma 2002).

In 2005, the average hourly earnings of unionized workers were higher than those of non-unionized workers. This held true for both full-time ($22.66 versus $19.13) and part-time ($19.10 versus $11.62) employees.

In addition to having higher hourly earnings, unionized part-time employees generally worked more hours per week than their non-unionized counterparts (19.3 hours versus 16.9). As a result, their average weekly earnings were nearly double ($375.99 versus $200.46).

On average, unionized women working full time received 93% as much in hourly earnings as their male counterparts. In contrast, women working part time earned 12% more.

Table 3—Average earnings and usual hours by union and job status, 2005
Table 3—Average earnings and usual hours by union and job status, 2005 (continued)
Table 3—Average earnings and usual hours by union and job status, 2005 (concluded)

Table 4—Wage settlements, inflation and labour disputes

Wage gains in 2005 (2.3%) almost matched the rate of inflation (2.2%), as was the case in the previous year. During the first four months of 2006, wage gains averaged 2.4%, also virtually matching the rate of inflation (2.5%).

Wage gains in the public sector in 2005 (2.2%) fell slightly short of those in the private sector (2.4%). The corresponding figures in the first four months of 2006 were 2.4% and 2.6%.

Annual statistics on strikes, lockouts and person-days lost are affected by several factors, including collective bargaining timetables, size of the unions involved, strike or lockout duration, and state of the economy. The number of collective agreements up for renewal in a year determines the potential for industrial disputes. Union size and strike or lockout duration determine the number of person-days lost. The state of the economy influences the likelihood of an industrial dispute, given that one is legally possible.

The estimated number of person-days lost through strikes and lockouts almost doubled from 1.7 million in 2003 to roughly 3.2 million in 2004, and rose again to 4.1 million in 2005.

Table 4—Major wage settlements, inflation and labour disputes

References

• Akyeampong, Ernest B. 2000. "Non-unionized but covered by collective agreement." Perspectives on Labour and Income (Statistics Canada, catalogue no. 75-001-XPE) 12, no. 3 (Autumn): 33-59.

• ---. 2002. "Unionization and fringe benefits." Perspectives on Labour and Income (Statistics Canada, catalogue no. 75-001-XIE) 3, no. 8. August 2002 online edition.

• Fang, Tony and Anil Verma. 2002. "Union wage premium." Perspectives on Labour and Income (Statistics Canada, catalogue no. 75-001-XIE) 3, no. 9. September 2002 online edition.

Unionization PDF

For further information, contact Ernest B. Akyeampong, Labour and Household Surveys Analysis Division. He can be reached at (613) 951-4624 or perspectives@statcan.gc.ca.

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