State of the Unions
The “State of the Unions” is an annual report from the UCLA Institute for Research on Labor and Employment (IRLE) providing an assessment of California’s labor movement. The report measures union membership, worker organizing and strike activity, and includes regional case studies from partnering institutions across the University of California.
Released from 2005-2015, the IRLE relaunched the State of the Unions in 2024, in response to increased strain on working class families and the uptick of labor organizing and protest activity in the 2020s. View the report archive below.
In 2025, the State of the Unions captures workers’ wins and struggles as the movement faced heightened challenges in the first year of President Trump’s second term in office.
State of the Unions in the News
Media contact:
For press and media inquiries, please contact Willa Needham, willaneedham@ucla.edu.
- The share of Californians in unions holds steady as nationwide numbers continue decline, Los Angeles Times, August 25, 2025
- California unions held their ground last year but face big tests in 2025, Sacramento Bee, August 25, 2025
- Unions Are Shrinking Nationwide — But Not in California, Capital & Main, August 29, 2025
- The State of California’s Labor Movement, KPFA, August 28, 2025
- Labor Day 2025: In CA, job market is shaky but unions are strong, KCRW, September 2, 2025
