new unionism>> union federations

Beyond the numbers game
by Peter Hall-Jones

logo We've said it before and we'll say it again... the trade union movement is no longer in decline! Earlier we reported that from 1997 to 2003 it grew in more countries than not*. Since discovering this we have been collecting further data (see below) and measuring the trend and extent of change. Thanks to ongoing help from our readers, we can now update our report of 2007.

Below you will find post-2000 information relating to 444 national federations. Of these, we have found comparative data for 228 (51%). This includes almost all of the large ones, and so the data set represents by far the majority of the world's unionised workforce. Of these, 49% have grown, 35% have declined, and 17% report no significant change. The graph below presents this information in more detail.

Change in national union federation membership
numbers between 2000-2007**
federations

The data from which this graph was derived is set out in a table below . You can also download a spreadsheet containing hyperlinks to the sources used here. A similar graph showing trends in union membership by country is available here.

It shows the power of the media massage that this information should be so hard to believe. The global union movement is in a much stronger position than many are prepared to accept. When looked at internationally (as one must, in a global labour market) unions have played the numbers game and won. Of course the struggle to build and maintain membership must continue, however it would appear that the time has come for a shift away from "business unionism". People do not join unions to help protect unionism as an industry. Beyond numbers lies the task of rebuilding influence.

Country	National federation name	Most recent membership	Year	First post-2000 data	Year	% change
Albania	BSPSH - the Union of Independent Trade Unions of Albania	85,000	2007	83,847	2006	1.38%
Albania	KSSH - the Confederation of Trade Unions of Albania	105,000	2006			Insufficient data
Algeria	UGTA - the General Union of Algerian Workers	1,532,968	2006	1,350,000	2005	13.55%
Angola	CGSILA - the General Centre of Independent and Free Unions	51,000	2006	51,000	2005	0.00%
Angola	FENSTACH - the National Federation of Unions of Food Industry, Commerce and Hotels	25,000	2005			Insufficient data
Angola	UNTA - the National Union of Angolan Workers	159,012	2006	400,000	2000	-60.25%
Antigua and Barbuda	ABWU - the Antigua Workers' Union	3,000	2006			Insufficient data
Argentina	CGT - General Confederation of Labor	4,401,023	2006			Insufficient data
Argentina	CTA - the Argentine Workers' Center	1,104,712	2008	1,127,000	2006	-2.02%
Australia	ACTU - the Australian Council of Trade Unions	2,000,000	2007	1,800,000	2003	11.11%
Austria	OGB - the Austrian Trade Union Federation	1,061,912	2006	1,407,000	2002	-32.50%
Azerbaijan	AHIK - the Azerbaijan Trade Unions Confederation	735,000	2006			Insufficient data
Bahrain	GFBTU - the General Federation of Bahrain Trade Unions	25,000	2007	10,000	2006	250.00%
Bangladesh	BFTUC - the Bangladesh Free Trade Union Congress	85,000	2006	97,540	2005	-14.75%
Bangladesh	BJSD - Bangladesh Jatiyatabadi Sramik Dal	180,000	2006	247,454	2005	-37.47%
Bangladesh	BLF - the Bangladesh Labour Federation	102,000	2006	100,844	2005	1.15%
Bangladesh	BMSF - Bangladesh Mukta Sramik Federation	40,000	2006	132,301	2005	-69.77%
Bangladesh	BSSF - Bangladesh Sangjukta Sramik Federation	101,500	2006	119,996	2005	-18.22%
Bangladesh	BTUF - the Bangladesh Trade Union Federation	1,648	2005			Insufficient data
Bangladesh	BTUS - Bangladesh Trade Union Sangha	19,303	2005			Insufficient data
Bangladesh	JSFB - Jatiyo Sramik Federation Bangladesh	15,881	2005			Insufficient data
Bangladesh	JSJ - Jatiyo Sramik Jote	2,260	2005			Insufficient data
Bangladesh	JSL - the Jatiyo Sramik League	101,500	2006	227,800	2005	-55.44%
Bangladesh	NTUF - the National Trade Union Federation	1,798	2005			Insufficient data
Bangladesh	NWF - the National Workers' Federation	10,467	2005			Insufficient data
Bangladesh	SSF - Samajtantrik Sramik Front	2,285	2005			Insufficient data
Bangladesh	TUK - the Bangladesh Trade Union Kendra	50,180	2005			Insufficient data
Belarus	BKDP - the Belarusian Congress of Democratic Trade Unions	9,000	2006	15,000	2001	-66.67%
Belarus	FPB - the Federation of Trade Unions of Belarus	4,032,156	2007	4,000,000	2003	0.80%
Belgium	CGSLB - the General Confederation of Liberal Trade Unions of Belgium	230,000	2007	223,000	2000	3.14%
Belgium	CSC-ACV - the General Union of Belgian Liberal Trade Unions	1,736,000	2007	1,637,000	2000	6.05%
Benin	CGTB - the General Confederation of the Workers	51,525	2006	8,650	2005	595.66%
Benin	COSI - the Centre for Independent Union Organisations of Benin	37,860	2006	7,624	2005	496.59%
Benin	CSA - the Autonomous Trade Unions Centre	53,000	2006	51,000	2000	3.92%
Benin	UNSTB - the National Union of the Unions of the Workers of Benin	36,000	2006	42,000	2005	-16.67%
Bermuda	BTUC - the Bermuda Trade Union Congress	5,000	2007	4,995	2006	0.10%
Bolivia	COB - the Bolivian Workers' Center	2,000,000	2007			Insufficient data
Bosnia and Herzegovina	KSBIH - the Confederation of Independent Trade Unions of Bosnia and Herzegovina	428,163	2006			Insufficient data
Bosnia and Herzegovina	SSRS - the Confederation of Trade Unions of the Republika Srpska	190,000	2005			Insufficient data
Botswana	BFTU - the Botswana Federation of Trade Unions	18,000	2005	100,000	2003	-82.00%
Brazil	CAT - Central Autonoma de Trabalhadores	700,000	2006			Insufficient data
Brazil	CGT - the General Confederation of Workers	600,000	2006	2,200,000	2000	-72.73%
Brazil	CNPL - Confederacao Nacional das Profisoes Liberais	260,000	2006			Insufficient data
Brazil	CUT - the Unique Workers' Center of Brazil	7,690,598	2007	4,570,000	2000	68.28%
Brazil	FS - Força Sindical	2,100,000	2006	2,100,000	2000	0.00%
Brazil	SDS - the Social Democratic Union	50,200	2006			Insufficient data
Bulgaria	ADS - the Association of Democratic Trade Unions	4,000	2003			Insufficient data
Bulgaria	KNSB - the Confederation of Independent Trade Unions of Bulgaria	350,000	2007	390,000	2003	-11.43%
Bulgaria	PODKREPA - the Confederation of Labour	150,000	2007	109,000	2003	37.61%
Bulgaria	PTU - the Promyana Trade Union	50,000	2007	5,000	2003	1000.00%
Burkina Faso	CNTB - the National Confederation of Workers	10,500	2006	8,000	2005	31.25%
Burkina Faso	CSB - the Confederation Syndicale Burkina Faso	16,977	2005			Insufficient data
Burkina Faso	ONSL - the National Organisations of Free Trade Unions	42,500	2006	42,500	2005	0.00%
Burkina Faso	UGTB - Union Generale des Travailleurs du Burkina Faso	6,000	2005			Insufficient data
Burkina Faso	USTB - Burkina Faso Workers' Union	8,700	2006	6,000	2005	45.00%
Burundi	COSYBU - the Confederation of Burundi Unions	12,000	2006	12,079	2005	-0.66%
Burundi	CSB - Confederation Syndicale du Burundi	5,500	2006	5,500	2005	0.00%
Cambodia	FTUWKC - the Free Trade Union of Workers	60,000	2007			Insufficient data
Cameroon	CSTC - Confederation Syndicale des Travailleurs du Cameroun	200,000	2006	385,000	2001	-92.50%
Cameroon	USLC - the Union of Free Trade Unions of Cameroon	50,000	2006	12,000	2005	416.67%
Canada	CLAC - the Christian Labour Association of Canada	43,000	2007	38,000	2006	13.16%
Canada	CLC-CTC - the Canadian Labour Congress	3,197,600	2005	3,156,560	2004	1.30%
Canada	CSD - Centrale des Syndicats Démocratiques	70,000	2007	70,000	2006	0.00%
Canada	CSN - Confédération des Syndicats Nationaux	300,000	2007	300,000	2006	0.00%
Canada	CSQ - Centrale des Syndicats du Québec	180,000	2008	172,000	2007	4.65%
Canada	CTF - the Canadian Teachers' Federation	215,000	2007			Insufficient data
Canada	FNEEQ-CSN - Fédération Nationale des Enseignantes et Enseignants du Québec	25,000	2007			Insufficient data
Canada	FTQ - Federation des Travailleurs du Quebec	500,000	2007			Insufficient data
Cape Verde	CCSL - Confederation Capverdienne des Syndicats Libres	18,000	2005			Insufficient data
Cape Verde	CFLU - the Council of Free Labour Unions	18,000	2007			Insufficient data
Cape Verde	UNTC-CS - the Trade Unions of Cape Verde Unity Centre	15,000	15000	15,000	2005	0.00%
Central African Republic	CSTC - Confederation Syndicale des Travailleurs de Centrafrique	11,124	2006	6,146	2005	81.00%
Central African Republic	UCAW - the Union of Central African Workers	15,000	2007			Insufficient data
Central African Republic	USTC - Union Syndicale des Travailleurs de Centrafrique	15,000	2006	15,000	2005	0.00%
Chad	CLTT - the Free Confederation of Chadian Workers	42,000	2006	1,000	2005	4200.00%
Chad	UST - the Union of Trade Unions of Chad	55,000	2006	30,000	2005	83.33%
Chile	CAT - Central Autónoma de Trabajadores	107,000	2006			Insufficient data
Chile	CUT - the Workers' United Center of Chile	400,000	2006	475,000	2001	-18.75%
China, People's Republic of	ACFRWU - the All-China Federation of Railway Workers' Unions	3,100,000	2006			Insufficient data
China, People's Republic of	ACFTU - the All-China Federation of Trade Unions	169,940,000	2007	130,000,000	2002	30.72%
China, People's Republic of	CFL - the Chinese Federation of Labour (Taiwan)	500,000	2006			Insufficient data
China, People's Republic of	HKCTU - the Hong Kong Confederation of Trade Unions	180,000	2007	164,300	2005	9.56%
China, People's Republic of	HKFLU - the Hong Kong and Kowloon Federation of Labour Unions	40,000	2007			Insufficient data
China, People's Republic of	HKFTU - the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions	310,000	2007	290,000	2006	6.90%
China, People's Republic of	HKTUC - the Hong Kong and Kowloon Trades Union Council	5,000	2006			Insufficient data
China, People's Republic of	JOU - the Joint Organization of Unions (Hong Kong)	3,000	2006			Insufficient data
Colombia	CGT - Confederacion General de Trabajadores	700,000	2006			Insufficient data
Colombia	CTC - the Confederation of Workers	400,000	2006			Insufficient data
Colombia	CUT - the Central Union of Workers	860,000	2006			Insufficient data
Comoros	CTTC - Confédération des Travailleuses et Travailleurs des Comores	4,000	2006			Insufficient data
Congo	COSYLAC - the Confederation of Free and Autonomous Unions	18,735	2006	13,000	2005	44.12%
Congo	CSC - the Congolese Trade Union Confederation	25,000	2006			Insufficient data
Congo	CSTC - Confederation Syndicale des Travailleurs du Congo	68,500	2006	67,841	2005	0.97%
Cook Islands	CIWA - the Cook Islands Workers' Association	1,200	2006			Insufficient data
Costa Rica	CMTC - the Central del Movimiento de Trabajadores Costarricenses	108,000	2006			Insufficient data
Costa Rica	CRCW - the Costa Rican Confederation of Workers	90,000	2007			Insufficient data
Costa Rica	CTRN - Confederación du Trabajadores Rerum Novarum	30,000	2006			Insufficient data
Cote d'Ivoire	Dignite - Centrale des Syndicats Libres de Cote d'Ivoire	100,000	2006	50,000	2005	200.00%
Cote d'Ivoire	UGTCI - the General Workers' Union	208,129	2006	120,000	2005	73.44%
Croatia	CTUA - the Croatian Trade Union Association	2,007	40000			Insufficient data
Croatia	NHS - Independent Trade Unions of Croatia	87,313	2007			Insufficient data
Croatia	UATUC - the Union of Autonomous Trade Unions of Croatia	211,000	2007			Insufficient data
Cuba	CTC - the Workers' Central Union	3,000,000	2007			Insufficient data
Cyprus	CUBE - the Cyprus Union of Bank Employees	10,000	2007			Insufficient data
Cyprus	DEOK - Democratic Labour Federation of Cyprus	7,500	2007	7,000	2001	7.14%
Cyprus	DEV-IS - the Revolutionary Trade Unions Federation	4,500	2007			Insufficient data
Cyprus	PEO - the Pancyprian Federation of Labour	70,000	2007	64,000	2001	9.38%
Cyprus	SEK - the Cyprus Workers' Confederation	70,000	2007	65,000	2001	7.69%
Cyprus	TURK-SEN - the Cyprus Turkish Unions Federation	3,005	2006			Insufficient data
Czech Republic	ASO - the Association of Autonomous Trade Unions	170,000	2004			Insufficient data
Czech Republic	CMKOS - the Czech-Moravian Confederation of Trade Unions	772,000	2007	1,200,000	2000	-55.44%
Czech Republic	KUK - the Confederation of Art and Culture	59,000	2007			Insufficient data
Czech Republic	OSCMS - the Trade Union Federation of Bohemia, Moravia and Silesia	16,000	2007			Insufficient data
Democratic Republic of the Congo	CDT - the Democratic Confederation of Labour	51,000	2006	200,000	2005	-74.50%
Democratic Republic of the Congo	CSC - Confederation Syndicale du Congo	100,000	2006	10,000	2005	1000.00%
Democratic Republic of the Congo	UNTC - the National Union of Congolese Workers	51,000	2006	326,452	2005	-84.38%
Denmark	3F - the General Workers' Union	352,588	2007			Insufficient data
Denmark	AC - the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations	256,000	2006	255,000	2005	0.39%
Denmark	FTF - the Salaried Employees' and Civil Servants' Confederation	450,000	2005			Insufficient data
Denmark	LH - Ledernes Hovedorganisation	85,000	2007	76,000	2002	11.84%
Denmark	LO - the Danish Confederation of Trade Unions	1,300,000	2007	1,433,000	2002	-10.23%
Djibouti	UDT - the Union of Djibouti Workers	13,000	2006	15,000	2005	-15.38%
Dominica	DAWU - the Dominica Amalgamated Workers' Union	2,500	2006			Insufficient data
Dominica	DTU - the Dominica Trade Union	820	2006			Insufficient data
Dominican Republic	CASC - Confederacion Autonoma Sindical Clasista	172,000	2006			Insufficient data
Dominican Republic	CNTD - the National Confederation of Dominican Workers	143,000	2006			Insufficient data
East Timor	ETTUC - the East Timor Trade Union Confederation	4,700	2007			Insufficient data
Ecuador	CEDOC - Central Ecuatoriana de Organizaciones Clasistas	62,500	2006			Insufficient data
Ecuador	CEOSL - the Ecuador Confederation of Free Trade Union Organizations	110,000	2006			Insufficient data
Egypt	ETUF - the Egyptian Trade Union Federation	2,500,000	2007	3,500,000	2005	-40.00%
El Salvador	CATS - Central Autónoma de Trabajadores Salvadoreños	30,000	2006			Insufficient data
El Salvador	CTD - Central de Trabajadores Democráticos	50,000	2006			Insufficient data
El Salvador	FENASTRAS - Federación Nacional Sindical de Trabajadores Salvadoreños	36,000	2007			Insufficient data
Eritrea	NCEW - the National Confederation of Eritrean Workers	26,000	2006	26,000	2005	0.00%
Estonia	EAKL - the Confederation of Estonian Trade Unions	47,500	2007	48,000	2002	-1.05%
Estonia	ETMK - the Confederation of Estonian Food and Landworkers' Unions	4,286	2007			Insufficient data
Estonia	TALO - the Estonian Employees' Unions' Confederation	37,000	2007	35,000	2002	5.71%
Ethiopia	CETU - the Confederation of Ethiopian Trade Unions	203,560	2006	400,000	2001	-96.50%
Fiji	FTUC - the Fiji Trades Union Congress	33,000	2007	33,000	2006	0.00%
Finland	AKAVA - the Confederation of Unions for Academic Professionals	461,000	2007	424,000	2003	8.73%
Finland	SAK - the Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions	1,046,000	2006	1,062,000	2003	-1.53%
Finland	STTK - the Finnish Confederation of Salaried Employees	650,000	2007	634,000	2003	2.52%
France	CFDT - the French Democratic Confederation of Labour	875,000	2007	889,000	2002	-1.60%
France	CFECGC - the French Confederation of Management - General Confederation of Executives	160,000	2007			Insufficient data
France	CFTC - the French Confederation of Christian Workers	132,000	2007	140,000	2006	-6.06%
France	CGT - the General Confederation of Labour	710,000	2007	712,000	2004	-0.28%
France	FO - Force Ouvrière	300,000	2007	300,000	2003	0.00%
France	FSCOPA - Fédération des Syndicats Chrétiens des Organismes et Professions de l'Agriculture	1,800	2007			Insufficient data
France	FSU - Fédération Syndicale Unitaire	166,000	2007			Insufficient data
France	UIR-CFDT - Union Interprofessionelle de la Reunion	16,000	2006			Insufficient data
France	UNSA - Union Nationale des Syndicats Autonomes	360,000	2007			Insufficient data
France	UNSA-Education	100,000	2007			Insufficient data
Gabon	CGSL - the Gabon Confederation of Free Trade Unions	19,000	2006	19,000	2005	0.00%
Gabon	COSYGA - the Gabonese Trade Union Confederation	14,610	2006	3,000	2005	487.00%
Gambia	GLC - the Gambia Labour Congress	45,000	2005			Insufficient data
Gambia	GWC - the Gambian Workers' Confederation	52,000	2006	3,000	2005	1733.33%
Gambia	GWU - the Gambia Workers' Union	3,000	2005			Insufficient data
Georgia	GTUC - the Georgian Trade Union Confederation	204,532	2007	200,000	2006	2.27%
Germany	CGB - the Christian Trade Union Federation of Germany	300,000	2007	300,000	2001	0.00%
Germany	DBB - the German Civil Service Federation	1,270,000	2007	1,224,000	2002	3.76%
Germany	DGB - the German Confederation of Trade Unions	6,600,000	2006	7,363,000	2003	-11.56%
Ghana	GFL - the Ghana Federation of Labour	10,000	2007	10,545	2005	-5.45%
Ghana	GTUC - the Ghana Trades Union Congress	275,000	2007	350,000	2005	-27.27%
Greece	ADEDY - the Civil Servants' Confederation	280,000	2007	217,000	2003	29.03%
Greece	GSEE - the General Confederation of Greek Workers	450,000	2007	422,000	2003	6.64%
Greece	PAME - the All Workers' Militant Front	460,560	2007			Insufficient data
Grenada	GTUC - Grenada Trades Union Council	8,000	2006			Insufficient data
Guatemala	CGTG - Central General de Trabajadores de Guatemala	60,000	2006			Insufficient data
Guatemala	CUSG - the Unified Confederation of Trade Unions of Guatemala	30,000	2006	35,000	2001	-16.67%
Guinea	CNTG - the National Confederation of Guinean Workers	100,500	2006	41,475	2005	242.31%
Guinea	ONSLG - the National Organization of Free Unions of Guinea	43,000	2006	43,500	2005	-1.16%
Guinea	UGTG - Union Generale des Travailleurs de Guinee	25,360	2005			Insufficient data
Guinea	USTG - the General Union of the Workers	41,000	2006	40,212	2005	1.96%
Guinea-Bissau	UNTGB - the United Trade Union of Guinean Workers	50,000	2006	39,691	2005	25.97%
Guyana	GTUC - the Guyana Trades Union Congress	15,000	2006			Insufficient data
Haiti	CTH - the Confederation of Haiitian Workers	6,000	2006			Insufficient data
Honduras	CGT - Central General de Trabajadores	250,000	2006			Insufficient data
Honduras	CTH - the Honduras Workers' Confederation	55,000	2006			Insufficient data
Honduras	CUTH - Confederación Unitaria de Trabajadores de Honduras	295,000	2006			Insufficient data
Hungary	ASzSz - the Autonomous Trade Union Confederation	120,000	2007	150,000	2003	-25.00%
Hungary	ESZT - Confederation of Unions for Professionals	85,000	2003			Insufficient data
Hungary	LIGA - the Democratic Confederation of Free Trade Unions	101,000	2006	100,000	2003	1.00%
Hungary	MOSZ - the National Federation of Workers' Councils	56,000	2007	56,000	2003	0.00%
Hungary	MSzOSz - the National Confederation of Hungarian Trade Unions	465,000	2007	240,000	2003	93.75%
Hungary	SZEF - Forum for the Cooperation of Trade Unions	274,000	2007	270,000	2003	1.48%
Iceland	ASI - the Icelandic Confederation of Labour	88,307	2006	88,905	2005	-0.68%
India	AICCTU - All India Central Council of Trade Unions	639,962	2002			Insufficient data
India	AITUC - the All India Trade Union Congress	7,500,000	2007	3,300,000	2006	227.27%
India	BMS - the Indian Workers' Union	7,639,000	2007	6,500,000	2000	17.52%
India	CITU - the Centre of Indian Trade Unions	3,400,000	2007	3,500,000	2003	-2.94%
India	HMS - Hind Mazdoor Sabha	4,500,000	2007	3,200,000	2006	40.63%
India	INTUC - the Indian National Trade Union Congress	3,800,000	2006			Insufficient data
India	LPF - the Labour Progressive Federation	9,000	2007			Insufficient data
India	UTUC - the United Trade Union Centre - Lenin Sarani	2,000,000	2007			Insufficient data
Indonesia	ITUC - Indonesian Trade Union Congress	506,236	2006			Insufficient data
Indonesia	KSBSI - the Confederation of Indonesia Prosperity Trade Union	426,000	2006	462,000	2007	-8.45%
Indonesia	KSPI - the Confederation of All Indonesian Workers' Union	4,600,000	2007			Insufficient data
Ireland	ICTU - the Irish Congress of Trade Unions	770,000	2007	766,647	2003	0.44%
Israel	New Histadrut - the General Federation of Labour in Israel	700,000	2007	500,000	2000	40.00%
Italy	CGIL - the Italian General Confederation of Labour	5,567,000	2006	5,461,000	2002	1.94%
Italy	CISAL - the Italian Confederation of Free Workers' Unions	1,700,000	2007	1,500,000	2001	13.33%
Italy	CISL - the Italian Confederation of Workers' Trade Unions	4,347,000	2006	4,153,000	2002	4.67%
Italy	CONFSAL - the Workers Autonomous Trade Unions' Confederation	1,000,000	2007	1,687,837	2001	-68.78%
Italy	FP-CGIL - the Italian General Confederation of Labour	5,500,000	2007			Insufficient data
Italy	UIL - the Italian Labour Union	1,936,000	2007	1,652,000	2002	17.19%
Japan	DENRYOKU SOREN - the Confederation of Electric Power Industry Workers' Unions	251,000	2000			Insufficient data
Japan	FOOD RENGO - the Federation of All Japan Foods and Tobacco Workers' Unions	105,000	2000			Insufficient data
Japan	GOMU RENGO - the Japanese Rubber Workers' Unions Confederation	50,000	2000			Insufficient data
Japan	INSATSU ROREN - the Federation of Printing Information Media Workers' Unions	23,000	2000			Insufficient data
Japan	JIDOSHA SOREN - the Confederation of Japan Automobile Workers' Unions	724,000	2007	744,000	2000	-2.76%
Japan	JR SOREN - the Japan Confederation of Railway Workers' Unions	62,300	2007			Insufficient data
Japan	JSD - the Japan Federation of Service and Distributive Workers' Unions	194,000	2007			Insufficient data
Japan	KAGAKUSOREN - the Japanese Federation of Chemical Workers' Unions	63,000	2000			Insufficient data
Japan	KAMIPA RENGO - the Japanese Federation of Pulp and Paper Workers' Unions	46,000	2000			Insufficient data
Japan	KENSETSU RENGO - the Japan Construction Trade Union Confederation	11,000	2000			Insufficient data
Japan	KOKU RENGO - the Japan Federation of Aviation Industry Unions	24,000	2001	25,000	2000	-4.17%
Japan	NHK ROREN - the Federation of All-NHK Labour Unions	12,000	2000			Insufficient data
Japan	NIHON IROREN - the Japan Federation of Medical Workers' Unions	173,221	2001	155,000	2000	11.76%
Japan	NIKKENKYO - the Council of Japan Construction Industry Employees' Unions	56,000	2000			Insufficient data
Japan	NIKKYOSO - the Japan Teachers' Union	350,000	2000			Insufficient data
Japan	NUGW - the National Union of General Workers	9,824	2001	46,000	2000	-78.64%
Japan	RENGO - the Japanese Trade Union Confederation	6,595,000	2007	7,314,000	2000	-10.90%
Japan	ZENJIKO ROREN - the National Federation of Automobile Transport Workers' Unions	44,000	2000			Insufficient data
Japan	ZENKOKU GAS - the Federation of Gas Workers' Unions	30,000	2000			Insufficient data
Japan	ZENKOKU NODANRO - the National Federation of Agricultural, Forestry and Fishery Corporations' Workers' Unions	22,000	2000			Insufficient data
Japan	ZENROKYO - the National Trade Union Council	139,424	2007	261,000	2000	-87.20%
Japan	ZENROREN - the National Confederation of Trade Unions	846,362	2007	1,036,000	2000	-22.41%
Japan	ZENSHINRO - the National Federation of Credit Association Workers' Unions	6,000	2001			Insufficient data
Jordan	GFJTU - the General Federation of Jordanian Trade Unions	120,000	2006	230,000	2001	-91.67%
Kazakhstan	FPRK - the Federation of Trade Unions of the Republic of Kazakhstan	1,500,000	2007			Insufficient data
Kenya	COTU - the Central Organization of Trade Unions	1,500,000	2007	600,000	2005	250.00%
Kiribati	KTUC - Kiribati Trade Union Congress	2,700	2007	2,600	2006	3.85%
Kosovo	BSPK - the Union of Independent Trade Unions of Kosova	106,607	2006			Insufficient data
Kuwait	KTUF - Kuwait Trade Union Federation	60,000	2007	34,274	2006	75.06%
Laos	LFTU - the Lao Federation of Trade Unions	77,000	2007			Insufficient data
Latvia	LBAS - the Free Trade Confederation of Latvia	165,000	2007	250,000	2000	-51.52%
Lebanon	GCLW - General Confederation of Lebanese Workers	200,000	2007			Insufficient data
Lesotho	COLETU - the Congress of Lesotho Trade Unions	13,000	2005	8,000	2003	62.50%
Lesotho	LECODU - the Lesotho Congress of Democratic Unions	15,000	2005			Insufficient data
Lesotho	LTUC - Lesotho Trade Unions Congress	1,639	2005	33,000	2005	-95.03%
Liberia	CONATUL - the Congress of National Trade Unions of Liberia	25,000	2006			Insufficient data
Liberia	LFLU - the Liberia Federation of Labour Unions	17,000	2006	16,500	2005	3.03%
Libya	GFPTU - the General Federation of Producers' Trade Unions	500,000	2005			Insufficient data
Liechtenstein	LEA - the Liechtenstein Employees' Association	1,300	2007			Insufficient data
Lithuania	LDF - the Lithuanian Federation of Labour	20,000	2006	20,000	2000	0.00%
Lithuania	LPSK - the Lithuanian Trade Union Confederation	120,000	2007	100,000	2006	20.00%
Lithuania	LZUD - the Trade Union Federation of Lituanian Agricultural Workers	8,035	2007			Insufficient data
Lithuania	SOLIDARUMAS - the Lithuanian Trade Union	52,000	2006	53,000	2000	-1.92%
Luxembourg	ALEBA/UEP-NGL-SNEP - the National Union of Private Sector White-collar Union Federation	20,000	2003			Insufficient data
Luxembourg	CGFP - Confédération Générale de la Fonction Publique	24,000	2003			Insufficient data
Luxembourg	CGTL - Confederation Generale du Travail du Luxembourg	58,000	2007	63,622	2006	-9.69%
Luxembourg	LCGB - the Confederation of Christian Unions in Luxembourg	40,000	2007	40,000	2003	0.00%
Luxembourg	OGB-L - the Confederation of Independent Trade Unions	58,000	2007	46,000	2000	26.09%
Macedonia, Republic of	UNASM - Union of Independent and Autonomous Trade Unions of Macedonia	5,300	2006			Insufficient data
Madagascar	FISEMA - Confederation des Syndicats des Travailleurs de Madagascar	25,362	2006			Insufficient data
Madagascar	FISEMARE - Federation des Syndicats de Travailleurs de Madagascar	60,000	2005			Insufficient data
Madagascar	FMM - the Confederation of Malagasy Workers	15,000	2006	30,000	2000	-50.00%
Madagascar	SEKRIMA - the Christian Confederation of Malagasy Trade Unions	20,000	2006	5,000	2005	400.00%
Madagascar	USAM - the United Autonomous Unions of Madagascar	3,900	2006	2,706	2005	44.12%
Malawi	COMATU - the Congress of Malawi Trade Unions	7,000	2005			Insufficient data
Malawi	MCTU - the Malawi Congress of Trade Unions	180,000	2006	45,000	2001	400.00%
Malaysia	CUEPCS - the Congress of Unions of Employees in the Public and Civil Services	120,000	2007			Insufficient data
Malaysia	MKTR - the National Council of Unions of the Industrial and Lower Income Group of Government Workers	45,000	2007			Insufficient data
Malaysia	MTUC - the Malaysian Trades Union Congress	500,000	2007	404,000	2001	23.76%
Mali	CSTM - the Workers' Trade Union Confederation of Mali	15,010	2006	15,000	2003	0.07%
Mali	UNTM - the National Workers' Union	130,000	2006	122,000	2003	6.56%
Malta	CMTU - the Confederation of Malta Trade Unions	30,351	2006	36,000	2003	-18.61%
Malta	GWU - the General Workers' Union	46,500	2007	47,000	2002	-1.08%
Malta	UHM - the Malta Workers' Union	25,900	2007	25,600	2006	1.17%
Mauritania	CGTM - the General Confederation of Mauritanian Workers	25,000	2006	25,000	2005	0.00%
Mauritania	CLTM - the Free Confederation of Mauritanian Workers	56,000	2006	5,000	2005	1120.00%
Mauritania	UTM - the Union of Mauritanian Workers	28,789	2006			Insufficient data
Mauritius	CMT - Mauricienne de Travailleurs	10,258	2005			Insufficient data
Mauritius	FPU - the Federation of Progressive Unions	35,000	2007			Insufficient data
Mauritius	FSSC - the Federation of Civil Service Unions	25,000	2007	20,000	2005	25.00%
Mauritius	MLC - the Mauritius Labour Congress	30,000	2006	45,000	2001	-50.00%
Mauritius	MTUC - the Mauritius Trade Union Congress	25,000	2006	33,000	2005	-32.00%
Mauritius	NTUC - the National Trade Union Confederation	59,000	2006	10,000	2005	590.00%
Mexico	CNT - Consejo Nacional de Trabajadores	6,000	2006			Insufficient data
Mexico	CROC - Confederación Revolucionaria de Obreros y Campesinos	4,500,000	2007			Insufficient data
Mexico	CROM - the Regional Confederation of Mexican Workers	600,000	2007			Insufficient data
Mexico	CTM - the Confederation of Mexican Workers	1,500,000	2006	1,500,000	2002	0.00%
Mexico	FAT - the Authentic Labor Front	2,000,000	2007			Insufficient data
Mexico	UNT - Union Nacional de Trabajadores	500,000	2006			Insufficient data
Moldova	CSRM - the Confederation of Trade Unions of the Republic of Moldova	543,000	2007	356,266	2006	52.41%
Mongolia	CMTU - the Confederation of Mongolian Trade Unions	450,000	2006			Insufficient data
Montenegro	SSSCG - the Confederation of Independent Trade Unions of Montenegro	61,320	2006			Insufficient data
Morocco	CDT - the Democratic Confederation of Labour	61,500	2006	40,000	2005	53.75%
Morocco	GUMW - the General Union of Moroccan Workers	695,000	2007			Insufficient data
Morocco	UGTM - Union Générale des Travailleurs du Maroc	53,000	2006	21,765	2005	243.51%
Morocco	UMT - the Moroccan Workers' Union	320,000	2006	305,000	2005	4.92%
Mozambique	OTM - the Mozambique Workers' Organization	97,305	2006	120,000	2000	-23.32%
Namibia	NUNW - the National Union of Namibian Workers	65,000	2005	65,000	2004	0.00%
Namibia	TUCNA - the Trade Union Congress of Namibia	19,000	2007	17,500	2005	8.57%
Nepal	DECONT - the Democratic Confederation of Nepalese Trade Unions	75,000	2006			Insufficient data
Nepal	GEFONT - the General Federation of Nepalese Trade Unions	304,601	2006			Insufficient data
Nepal	NTUC - the Nepal Trade Union Congress	140,000	2006			Insufficient data
Netherlands	CGTC - Central General di Trahadonan di Corsow	5,380	2006			Insufficient data
Netherlands	CNV - the National Federation of Christian Trade Unions	340,000	2007	355,000	2003	-4.41%
Netherlands	FEDEBON - the Bonaire Federation of Labour	500	2006			Insufficient data
Netherlands	FNV - Federatie Nederlandse Vakbeweging Bondgenoten	1,181,800	2007	1,226,000	2003	-3.74%
Netherlands	FTA - the Aruban Workers' Federation	3,000	2006			Insufficient data
Netherlands	MHP - the Federation of Managerial and Professional Staff Unions	160,000	2007	169,000	2003	-5.63%
Netherlands	SSK - the Trade Unions Centre of Curaçao	4,000	2006			Insufficient data
New Caledonia	USOENC - Union des Syndicats des Ouvriers et Employés de Nouvelle-Calédonie	4,781	2006			Insufficient data
New Zealand	NZCTU - the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions	350,000	2007	319,660	2001	9.49%
Nicaragua	CST - the Sandinista Workers' Centre	40,000	2006			Insufficient data
Nicaragua	CTN - the Nicaraguan Workers' Centre	25,410	2006			Insufficient data
Nicaragua	CUS - the Confederation of Labour Unification	30,000	2006			Insufficient data
Niger	CDTN - the Democratic Confederation of Workers	40,000	2007			Insufficient data
Niger	CNT - the Nigerien Confederation of Labour	45,000	2006	15,000	2005	300.00%
Niger	USTN - the Union of Workers' Trade Unions of Niger	38,000	2006	60,000	2005	-57.89%
Nigeria	CFTU - the Congress of Free Trade Unions	100,000	2005			Insufficient data
Nigeria	NLC - the Nigeria Labour Congress	4,000,000	2007	4,000,000	2005	0.00%
Nigeria	TUC - the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria	500,000	2006	500,000	2005	0.00%
Norway	Akademikerne - the Federation of Norwegian Professional Associations	131,000	2007	132,756	2003	-1.34%
Norway	Fellesforbundet - the United Federation of Trade Unions	140,000	2007			Insufficient data
Norway	LO - the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions	834,221	2006	838,749	2003	-0.54%
Norway	UNIO - the Confederation of Unions for Professionals	262,000	2006	223,000	2003	17.49%
Norway	YS - the Confederation of Vocational Unions	206,361	2006	201,552	2003	2.39%
Pakistan	APFUTU - the All Pakistan Federation of United Trade Unions	183,000	2007			Insufficient data
Pakistan	APTUC - the All Pakistan Trade Union Congress	64,000	2006			Insufficient data
Pakistan	APTUF - All Pakistan Trade Union Federation	100,000	2003			Insufficient data
Pakistan	PWF - the Pakistan Workers' Federation	880,000	2006			Insufficient data
Palestinian territories	PGFTU - the Palestine General Federation of Trade Unions	290,000	2007	500,000	2003	-72.41%
Panama	CGTP - the General Confederation of Workers	53,250	2006			Insufficient data
Panama	CS - Convergencia Sindical	75,000	2006			Insufficient data
Panama	CTRP - the Confederation of Workers of the Republic of Panama	40,000	2006			Insufficient data
Papua New Guinea	PNGTUC - the Papua New Guinea Trade Union Congress	70,000	2007	45,000	2004	55.56%
Paraguay	CNT - National Workers' Central	120,840	2006			Insufficient data
Paraguay	CPT - the Paraguayan Workers' Confederation	7,672	2006			Insufficient data
Paraguay	CUT-A - Central Unitaria de Trabajadores - Auténtica	40,000	2006			Insufficient data
Peru	CATP - Central Autónoma de Trabajadores del Perú	12,705	2006			Insufficient data
Peru	CUT - Confederación Unitaria de Trabajadores del Perú	300,000	2007			Insufficient data
Philippines	ADFLO - the Alliance of Democratic Free Labor Organizations	958	2006			Insufficient data
Philippines	ADLO - the Association of Democratic Labor Organizations	9,185	2006			Insufficient data
Philippines	AFLU - the Associated Federation of Labor Unions	4,591	2006			Insufficient data
Philippines	CIUPS - the Confederation of Independent Unions in the Public Sector	55,000	2007			Insufficient data
Philippines	FFW - the Federation of Free Workers	27,078	2006			Insufficient data
Philippines	NACUSIP - the National Congress of Unions in the Sugar Industry in the Philippines	5,073	2006			Insufficient data
Philippines	NAFLU - the National Federation of Labor Unions	27,940	2006			Insufficient data
Philippines	TUCP - the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines	4,000,000	2006	1,500,000	2002	266.67%
Poland	FZZ - the Trade Unions Forum	250,000	2007	320,000	2003	-28.00%
Poland	NSZZ Solidarnosc - the Independent Self-Governing Trade Union	634,000	2006	1,200,000	2000	-89.27%
Poland	OPZZ - the All-Polish Agreement of Trade Unions	650,000	2006	800,000	2003	-23.08%
Portugal	CGTP - the General Confederation of Portuguese Workers	650,000	2007	652,000	2003	-0.31%
Romania	CNS - Cartel Alfa	1,050,000	2006	1,000,000	2003	5.00%
Romania	CSDR - the Democratic Trade Union Confederation of Romania	101,000	2006	650,000	2003	-84.46%
Romania	FSGR - the Federation of Trade Unions in the Gas Sector	25,000	2007			Insufficient data
Russia	FNPR - the Federation of Independent Trade Unions	27,800,000	2006	31,500,000	2002	-13.31%
Russia	KTR - the Confederation of Labour	1,250,000	2006			Insufficient data
Russia	RUJ - the Russian Union of Journalists	100,000	2007			Insufficient data
Russia	SOTSPROF - the Trade Union Association	453,000	2007			Insufficient data
Russia	VKT - the All-Russian Confederation of Labour	1,300,000	2006			Insufficient data
Rwanda	CESTRAR - the Trade Union Centre of Workers	35,000	2007	30,000	2005	16.67%
Rwanda	COTRAF - Congrès du Travail et de la Fraternité au Rwanda	4,200	2007	4,700	2006	-11.90%
Saint Lucia	NWU - the National Workers' Union	3,000	2006			Insufficient data
Samoa	STUC - the Samoa Trade Union Congress	1,502	2006			Insufficient data
San Marino	CDLS - Confederazione Democratica Lavoratori Sammarinesi	5,620	2006			Insufficient data
San Marino	CSDL - Confederazione Sammarinese del Lavoro	4,500	2006			Insufficient data
San Marino	SMCL - the San Marino Confederation of Labour	2,400	2007			Insufficient data
São Tomé and Príncipe	ONTSTP-CS - the National Organization of the Workers of São Tomé and Príncipe - Central Union	3,336	2006	3,133	2005	6.48%
São Tomé and Príncipe	UGT-STP - the General Union of the Workers of São Tomé and Príncipe	7,684	2006	1,867	2005	411.57%
Senegal	CNTS - the National Confederation of Senegalese Workers	60,000	2007	80,000	2005	-33.33%
Senegal	CNTS-FC - Confédération Nationale des Travailleurs du Sénégal - Forces du Changement	13,910	2005			Insufficient data
Senegal	CSA - Confederation des Syndicats Autonomes du Senegal	40,000	2006			Insufficient data
Senegal	UDTS - the Democratic Union of Senegalese Workers	20,000	2006	5,000	2005	400.00%
Senegal	UNSAS - the National Union of Autonomous Trade Unions of Senegal	53,000	2006	52,360	2005	1.22%
Senegal	UTLS - Union des Travailleurs Libres de Senegal	6,000	2005			Insufficient data
Serbia	CATUS - the Confederation of Autonomous Trade Unions of Serbia	680,000	2007	465,000	2006	46.24%
Seychelles	SFWU - the Seychelles Federation of Workers' Unions	5,000	2006	5,000	2005	0.00%
Sierra Leone	SLCTU - the Sierra Leone Confederation of Trade Unions	8,340	2006	3,916	2005	212.97%
Sierra Leone	SLLC - the Sierra Leone Labour Congress	25,000	2006	20,169	2005	23.95%
Singapore	NTUC - the National Trades Union Congress	225,000	2006	420,000	2003	-86.67%
Slovak Republic	KOZSR - the Confederation of Trade Unions of the Slovak Republic	347,760	2007	750,000	2001	-53.63%
Slovak Republic	NKOS - the Independent Christian Trade Unions of Slovakia	10,000	2007			Insufficient data
Slovenia	KNSS - the Confederation of New Trade Unions of Slovenia	35,000	2005	15,000	2003	233.33%
Slovenia	Konfederacija '90	40,000	2005	10,000	2003	400.00%
Slovenia	KSS Pergam - the Confederation of Trade Unions of Slovenia	87,000	2005	15,000	2003	580.00%
Slovenia	ZSSS - the Association of Free Trade Unions of Slovenia	300,000	2007	180,000	2003	66.67%
South Africa	CONSAWU - the Confederation of South African Workers' Unions	200,000	2006			Insufficient data
South Africa	COSATU - the Congress of South African Trade Unions	2,000,000	2007	1,700,000	2003	17.65%
South Africa	SACOTU - the South African Congress of Trade Unions	890,000	2007			Insufficient data
South Korea	FKTU - the Federation of Korean Trade Unions	880,000	2008	780,183	2004	12.79%
South Korea	KCTU - the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions	500,100	2006	673,880	2003	-34.75%
Spain	CC.OO - the Workers' Commissions of Spain	831,900	2006	770,000	2000	8.04%
Spain	ELA-STV - Solidarity of Basque Workers - Eusko Langileen Alkartasuna	110,000	2006			Insufficient data
Spain	USO - Union Sindical Obrera	110,000	2006	72,000	2000	52.78%
Sri Lanka	CWC - the Ceylon Workers' Congress	190,000	2006			Insufficient data
Sri Lanka	NWC - the National Workers' Congress	82,972	2006			Insufficient data
Suriname	OSAV - the Organization of Cooperating Autonomous Trade Unions	5,000	2006			Insufficient data
Suriname	PFTU - Progressive Federation of Trade Unions	7,000	2006			Insufficient data
Swaziland	SFL - the Swaziland Federation of Labour	12,000	2007	11,000	2005	9.09%
Swaziland	SFTU - the Swaziland Federation of Trade Unions	25,000	2007	83,000	2000	-69.88%
Sweden	LO - the Swedish Trade Union Confederation	1,680,000	2007	1,919,000	2002	-14.23%
Sweden	SACO - the Swedish Confederation of Professional Associations	421,500	2007	386,000	2002	9.20%
Sweden	TCO - the Swedish Confederation of Professional Employees	975,000	2007	1,065,000	2002	-9.23%
Switzerland	SGB - the Swiss Federation of Trade Unions	380,000	2007	315,000	2006	20.63%
Switzerland	Travail.Suisse - the Swiss Workers' Federation	170,000	2007			Insufficient data
Syria	GFTU - the General Federation of Trade Unions	300,000	2007			Insufficient data
Tajikistan	TFTU - the Tajikistan Federation of Trade Unions	1,500,000	2007			Insufficient data
Tanzania	TUCTA - the Trade Unions Congress of Tanzania	350,000	2006	308,656	2001	13.39%
Tanzania	ZATUC - the Zanzibar Trade Union Congress	15,000	2006	14,000	2003	7.14%
Thailand	LCT - the Labour Congress of Thailand	25,000	2007	25,000	2006	0.00%
Thailand	NCPE - the National Congress of Private Industrial Employees	150,000	2007	150,000	2006	0.00%
Thailand	TTUC - the Thai Trade Union Congress	8,000	2006	8,000	2006	0.00%
Togo	CGCT - Confederation Generale des Syndicats Libres	840	2005			Insufficient data
Togo	CNTT - the National Confederation of Togolese Workers	35,000	2006	35,000	2005	0.00%
Togo	CSTT - the Confederation Syndicale de Travailleurs du Togo	55,250	2006	20,000	2005	276.25%
Togo	GSA - Groupe des Syndicats Autonomes	5,600	2005			Insufficient data
Togo	UGSL - Union Generale des Syndicats Libres	10,000	2005			Insufficient data
Togo	UNSIT - the National Union of Independent Trade Unions of Togo	8,061	2006			Insufficient data
Togo	UTT - Union des Travailleurs du Togo	4,200	2005			Insufficient data
Trinidad and Tobago	FITUN - the Federation of Independent Trade Unions and Non-Governmental Organisations	2,000	2007			Insufficient data
Trinidad and Tobago	NATUC - the National Trade Union Centre of Trinidad and Tobago	45,000	2006			Insufficient data
Tunisia	UGTT - the Tunisian General Labour Union	539,000	2006	532,917	2005	1.14%
Turkey	DISK - the Confederation of Revolutionary Trade Unions	327,000	2007			Insufficient data
Turkey	HAK-IS - the Confederation of Turkish Real Trade Unions	330,000	2006			Insufficient data
Turkey	KESK - the Confederation of Public Workers' Unions	200,000	2006			Insufficient data
Turkey	TURK-IS - the Confederation of Turkish Trade Unions	400,000	2007	600,000	2006	-50.00%
Turkmenistan	NCTUT - the National Centre of Trade Unions of Turkmenistan	1,300,000	2007			Insufficient data
Uganda	NOTU - the National Organisation of Trade Unions	89,500	2006	80,000	2001	11.88%
Ukraine	FPU - the Federation of Trade Unions	10,000,000	2007	11,192,950	2006	-11.93%
Ukraine	KVPU - the Confederation of Free Trade Unions	148,000	2007	242,000	2006	-63.51%
Ukraine	VOST - All-Ukrainian Union of Workers' Solidarity	150,000	2006			Insufficient data
United Kingdom	GFTU - the General Federation of Trade Unions	225,687	2006			Insufficient data
United Kingdom	STUC - the Scottish Trades Union Congress	630,000	2007			Insufficient data
United Kingdom	TUC - the Trades Union Congress	6,500,000	2007	6,685,000	2001	-2.85%
United States	AFL-CIO - the American Federation of Labor - Congress of Industrial Organizations	10,500,000	2007	13,000,000	2001	-23.81%
United States	AFSCME - the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees	1,400,000	2007	1,300,000	2002	7.69%
United States	AFT - the American Federation of Teachers	1,400,000	2007	1,300,000	2006	7.69%
United States	CtW - Change to Win	6,000,000	2005			Insufficient data
Uruguay	PIT-CNT - the Intersyndical Plenary of Workers of the National Convention of Workers	120,000	2007			Insufficient data
Vanuatu	VCTU - the Vanuatu Council of Trade Unions	1,853	2006			Insufficient data
Venezuela	ASI - Alianza Sindical Independiente	120,000	2006			Insufficient data
Venezuela	CGT - Confederacion General de Trabajadores	51,000	2006			Insufficient data
Venezuela	CODESA - Confederación de Sindicatos Autónomos	54,450	2006			Insufficient data
Venezuela	CTV - the Confederation of Workers	250,000	2006	800,000	2002	-68.75%
Vietnam	VGCL - the Vietnam General Confederation of Labour	4,300,000	2007			Insufficient data
Yemen	GFWTUY - the General Federation of Workers' Trade Unions	350,000	2006			Insufficient data
Zambia	FFTUZ - the Federation of Free Trade Unions of Zambia	20,000	2005	35,000	2003	-75.00%
Zambia	ZCTU - the Zambia Congress of Trade Unions	350,000	2006	210,557	2000	66.23%
Zimbabwe	NFTU - the National Federation of Trade Unions	12,000	2005			Insufficient data
Zimbabwe	ZCTU - the Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions	170,000	2006	361,000	2005	-52.91%

Last updated 20/4/08

Discussion

How "robust" is the data above? It has been collected from credible and publicly accessible sources. As a Google search will confirm, we have used every bit of such data that we could find. Of course, this is not enough to c0onstitute any kind of proof. Union membership is a notoriously difficult area of study.

There will be people out there who can read the data above and know at a glance cases where we have been misinformed. Please, rather than using this knowledge to discount our work, contact us! This is an "open source" collaborative work - we need to maintain it with the best information we can find.
You can use this form or email us here.

The first problem the intrepid researcher must face is that unions have differing definitions of "membership". Some include the unemployed, the retired, honourary characters and/or students in their figures. Some count only fee-paying members, while others count just about anybody who has taken home a union leaflet. And then there are those who include all of those whom they represent in collective bargaining, whether or not these people have ever heard of the union. But the biggest problem of all is that most of the world's unions simply don't have the infrastructure to maintain accurate data. There is no question of right or wrong here. Our approach has been to go with the definition used and to seek comparable figures from different years.

Then there are the heated arguments over whether certain unions are "genuine" (usually based around accusations of employer or government control). Some unions are also known to misreport data. Some are little more than mouthpieces for a particular religious or political belief (eg there are still national socialist "unions"). We have been taken the inclusive road; there are unions in our list which some might argue (according to their preferred definitions) are not "real unions". However by avoiding grand totals we have avoided giving any union a serious distorting influence in the overall picture. Each union counts as one. It is not their credibility that we measure, but the trend within their membership.

Then there are the problems caused by simplistic rendering of membership density statistics (as discussed here). We have not used membership density as a measuring tool here, and would advise others to be wary of such figures. They are analagous to a punchline without the joke. It is the information behind the percentage that we need.

And what is a national union federation? Some federations include subsets of members from other federations. In many countries there are unions who have become members of more than one national center. Some federations are, themselves, members of others. And some have split up but not yet regrouped - effectively leaving millions of workers off the record until they do. Again, until the day somebody approaches this question with a serious research budget, it pays to avoid any kind of national or international totalling.

Whatever happened to these big research commitments? Until fairly recently there were international institutions who made it their business to subscribe to Statistical Digests and employ professional statisticians to cross-reference methodolgies, disagregate totals and generally massage information into comparable shapes. Where there were gaps they undertook studies. Where there were problems they commissioned solutions. However this work became a political football in the mid-1980s, as certain governments ceased to be neutral players in the industrial relations game (while others never were). The last genuinely international study of union membership was published by the ILO more than ten years ago - on the same year that Princess Diana died. The data it used was even older. There are apparently no plans for another study. What we have been left with, then, is a faded snapshot from 1997. At that stage the union movement (in most developed countries) had been in retreat for twenty years. The outlook for unionism was the bleakest it has ever been. Imagine watching reruns of Diana's funeral every time you turn on the television. Effectively, this is what the media has been doing with their portrayal of a moribund union movement.

So what do we do? Ducking the question, as the international institutions seem to have done, has allowed the media to continue misrepresenting the state of unionism. One thing we can try - an approach which this network hopes to have initiated - is to seek a new math.We have presented an initial picture to the public, and are adopting an "open source" path to incrementally sharpen our data set and our methodology. We have spent almost a year (ie since May 2007) trialling this route, and have received positive feedback and help from leading authorities in the field. In terms of building empirical data the approach seems to be working, although it does not carry the authorative stamp necessary to create media coverage. So be it. The least we can do is challenge dominant narrative.

As we have shown elsewhere (details here), the period of 1997 to 2003 was something of a turning point for the union movement. Many of them, particularly those in richer countries, started to discuss new strategies, and to experiment with alternative visions and new ways forward. The countries which experienced the heaviest membership decline were those which offshored their manufacturing base and moved towards services. The new century has seen these unions slow and in many cases even reverse their membership decline. In the meantime those countries which received their manufacturing base have, by and large, seen strong membership growth. Every indication is that this trend has since accelerated.

"If they can get you asking the wrong questions, they don't have to worry about answers." Thomas Pynchon

Of course the worst thing about those endless feature stories on union decline is that they demoralise people and devalue the work of union members themselves. In fact if we aren't careful union decline may become a self-fulfilling prophecy. So, in conclusion, we would suggest that the movement pauses to acknowledge the work of those who have slowly but surely turned the situation around. Unionists, over the last 10 years you have achieved far more than you are given credit for. The question is not how to keep the movement afloat - this is just a recipe for reinforcing business unionism and bureaucratism. The question we face now is how we move beyond the numbers game, and start rebuilding workers' influence.

Some further notes on method

There will be people out there who know at a glance where we have been misinformed. Please, rather than using this knowledge to discount our work, contact us! You can use this form or email us here.

As this is an open project we have decided to draw exclusively on sources available online, so that nothing need be taken on faith. As stated above, we have a credible online source for each and every figure quoted above (click here to download the spreadsheet). We will only update our data when a publicly accessible source can be quoted.

In collecting data we have sometimes encountered conflicting figures for the same year. Sometimes both are from apparently reliable sources. Generally this can be explained by differences in the definitions applied. In such instances we have opted for the lower number unless we have comparable data (ie applyng the same definition) from other years.

Where a membership figure has remained identical over time we have defined the union membership as stable. We understand that this is a dubious assumption, however in taking this course we make the claim open to public scrutiny.

We have preferred certain sources over others. In most cases we have given credence to numbers declared in "About Us" statements on websites. It has been suggested that these figures are sometimes inflated. Wherever possible we investigate this. However it is trends over time and critical feedback we are looking for, and so we will continue with this approach unless a figure is clearly shown to be false. It should also be noted that a similar number of fugures are likely to under-represent membership numbers, as declarations to national and international federations often lead to capitation levies. In a few such cases we have flagged data for further research, but unless we are seriously in doubt we have published it in the meantime. The reason for this is that you, collectively, know more about these national realities than we do. Tell us where we are wrong!

The one case where, normally, we do not take a federation's word at face value is where the cited page is undated, and is in a second language. We have found that these pages are often created and then forgotten about for long periods. Unions often report one number in their primary language and a totally different one on their foreign language pages. We have used such data cautiously.

Membership declarations to the newly-formed ITUC have been an invaluable source. As noted above, these probably tend to be conservative. ICTUR, ETUI-REHS and EIRO are also justly renowned for their high-quality data. The ITUC and one of its predessors - the ICFTU - also did some great work in this area. We would particularly like to acknowledge three leading contributors in this field: Jelle Visser, Lionel Fulton and Mark Carley. Thanks also for useful comments from Richard Hyman and Peter Peek.

And then there is Wikipedia. Large scale comparative studies have shown that this open project is now as reliable as the Encyclopedia Britannica. However this is one area where the quality of data varies immensely. Again, we have used this source cautiously. For one thing, membership figures are seldom dated or sourced. Some pages are also clearly written with a political axe to grind. However where there is no other information available, and the relevant Wiki seems to be in accord with more general statements about a federation's size, we have included it in our reference set.

And then there are the contradictions. There are pressures on unions, as well as employers and governments, to skew the figures. In some countries union federations cannot take part in tripartite negotiations until they have reached a certain membership level. In others, unions under-report their membership because they cannot afford concommitant levies. In highly competitive environments unions and employers (including government, as the world's largest employer) often play numerical games to affect public opinion.

As noted, membership density usually distorts public perceptions as well. Indeed, there are cases where union membership has gone up but density has gone down. Usually it is the latter which is reported. The US and Australia are two prime examples. In 2006 their respective medias both announced a sizeable union decline, ignoring both employment and legislative shifts which more than accounted for the decrease. Trade union density figures do not tell us whether unions are growing or shrinking. Nor do they tell us what the changes have been in the labour market. Worse, they hide these figures, and prevent us from measuring change from one year to the next. Density is a useful figure, but only if it is accompanied by the data from which it is derived. Otherwise it is just a veil thrown over politcal and economic shifts.

The New Unionism network is now beginning a similar study of trends in trade union membership at individual union level. Again, we have adopted an open-source approach. We will need at least a year to produce our first set of results. You can preview our work here and help sharpen the data set here: http://www.younionize.org/directory.

Footnotes

* Click here to access the previous study.

** This graph is accurate for the data in the table below as at 20 April 2008. Thanks to those who have helped. With each cycle of data updates (four-monthly) we will produce a new iteration of the graph, and will update this note accordingly.