Northwest Labor Press is an independent union-supported newspaper founded in 1900. Our print version is mailed twice a month to about 45,000 members of over three dozen local unions in Oregon and Southwest Washington. Our online version has been maintained here since 1997.
Analysis
There’s news and statistics. And then there’s putting it all together to get the big picture. In this section, we analyze trends and try to make sense of the world we live in.
Support for unions at all-time high
Americans favor unions over big business by a record margin, according to the most recent in a series of annual surveys.
Growth industries
Oregon expects to see over 170,000 new jobs created by 2033, with big gains in the construction, warehousing, and healthcare workforce.
Fewer strikes in 2024
Major work stoppages were down in 2024, according the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, but still more than any year between 2001 and 2018.
STRIKE STORIES
Only two in a thousand U.S. workers took part in a strike last year. We asked readers who’ve experienced a strike to tell their stories.
Union membership down again in 2024
The U.S. union membership rate is now 9.9%, and just 5.9% for private sector workers, according to the latest annual BLS report.
Joe Biden: The best president labor ever had
He promised to be the most pro-union president in U.S. history. His administration went out of their way to keep that promise.
2024 in labor
For New Years, we took a look at the most important events for organized labor and working people — in Oregon, Washington and nationwide.
Boeing gives copy-cat raises to its non-union assembly workers in South Carolina
A union fight has once again raised standards for non-union workers too.
2024: The rest of the story
We’ve reported over 300 stories in 2024. At year's end, we update readers about what happened since we published some of those stories.
Why working class voters are turning away from the Democrats
Two Harvard researchers went to Pennsylvania. They found a lost world of thriving main streets, stable families, and tight social networks.
How Oregon election workers ensure accurate ballot counts
Every election season, union members in Oregon ensure the security of ballots, and the accuracy of counts.
FTC takes on hedge fund landlords
Would-be homebuyers are increasingly losing bidding wars to large investors. Senator Jeff Merkley wants to rein in hedge fund landlords.
Gallup: 70% approve of unions
And respondents who say they disapprove of unions is down to 23%, the lowest since 1967.
CEOs now paid 268 times what an average worker makes
It wasn’t always this way. In 1965, the typical CEO of a big U.S. corporation made 21 times the pay of the average worker.
The Strike Returns
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and Bloomberg agree: 2023 was the biggest strike year in decades.
Reality Check
Labor professor Gordon Lafer can be relied on to tell it straight. Was there something different about the strike upsurge of 2023? We asked.
U.S. union membership hits new low: 10.0%
That’s down just a hair from 2022, when it was 10.1% according to the most recent annual report by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
2023 in labor
Here are some of last year’s most important developments for organized labor and working people in Oregon, Washington and nationwide.
2023: The rest of the story
Since the start of 2023, we’ve reported almost 400 stories - here, we check in on what’s happened since we last reported on some of them.
Decision nears on Kroger-Albertsons merger
If Biden’s FTC approves it, a combination of Kroger and Albertsons would create a near-monopoly. The two of them own 40 grocery chains in all.
