Union membership rose in 2003
New statistics released today show that the trade union membership rose by around 27,000 in the year to autumn 2003.
The new National Statistics publication, “Trade union membership 2003”, shows that overall membership of unions rose to 7.38 million over the course of the year.
However, trade union membership amongst employees declined by around 11,000 in the same period. In autumn 2003 the number of employees in trade unions stood at around 7.068 million.
Nonetheless, the rate of trade union membership amongst employees actually rose between autumn 2002 and autumn 2003, from 29.2 per cent to 29.3 per cent.
The Office for National Statistics puts this, the first rise in the rate of union membership since 1989, down to the growing size of the public sector. Although public sector “union density” fell to 59.1 per cent from 59.7 per cent, the overall number of public employees rose by about 40,000.
In the private sector, the “union density” is less than 20 per cent. Only 34.4 per cent of private sector workplaces have any union presence, compared to 87.4 per cent in the public sector.
Moreover, the year saw the number of male employees in unions fall by 48,000, while female unionisation rose by 37,000.
Northern Ireland had the highest union density (39.4 per cent of
employees). In Wales it was 38.3 per cent, and in Scotland 35.5 per
cent. Union density was lowest in England (27.9 per cent).
