More Texan workers join unions, still lower than national average

AUSTIN (KXAN) — More people are joining unions in Texas, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The state labor federation, Texas AFL-CIO, said Austin employees are unionizing in industries where they’ve never done that before.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 4.5% of working Texans were union members last year. That’s up from 3.8% in 2021.

Texas AFL-CIO said specifically in Austin there’s growth in the tech industry.

“The folks at Google and YouTube in Austin just went on strike, and they’re still fighting for their contract,” said Texas AFL-CIO President Rick Levy.

Levy said one of the fastest-growing sectors for unions is journalism. Just a few weeks ago, employees at the Texas Tribune announced plans to unionize. This follows layoffs several months earlier.

Why are we seeing this increase?

Michael Green, a law professor at Texas A&M University, said there are several different reasons we’re seeing this increase.

He believes this growth started with the COVID-19 pandemic and employees realizing they wanted a collective voice to represent workers.

“If you did not have a union and you were just an individual who was concerned about safety in the workplace, protective equipment, wearing masks, certainly those issues became more prevalent in Texas,” Green said. “So individual workers were kind of in that moment struggling with, ‘How do I talk to my employer about protective equipment, about things I would have maybe never had to talk to him about?'”

Texas as a right-to-work state

Still, compared to the national average, Texas ranks low for union membership. It’s a right-to-work state, so an employee doesn’t have to join a union.

“But the union still has the obligation under the law, to represent everybody in the workplace, whether they’re a member or not,” Levy said.

On top of that, there’s an at-will employment policy. So, an employer can fire someone at any time for any reason.

“There’s a lot of fear,” Levy said. “It does take a certain courage to say, ‘I’m going to stand up and do this.'”

‘A new path’

It’s been about a year and a half since Ascension Seton nurse Kristine Kittelson joined the union National Nurses United.

Currently, nurses are in contract negotiations with the hospital. Kittelson said being a part of a union helps with those discussions.

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“A voice towards corporate elite to let them know that there are rules, but these are not working,” Kittelson said. “We’re here to change them. We’re here to make a difference.”

For Kittelson, joining a union was a decision she doesn’t regret. She’s hopeful for a contract agreement soon.

“Few things on the table right now that we’re really excited to solidify and work with them and hoping that they hear us and make sure that we get a contract for the benefit of everybody,” Kittelson said.

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