Treasury Releases Data on Wealth Inequality and Union Membership

The Treasury Department released historical trends in the US labor market, relating to Union membership and wealth inequality.  The data was released in an article by Deputy Assistant Secretary Laura Feiveson, who previously served on the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and served on the White House Council of Economic Advisors from 2009-2010.

The first section of the data shows an inverse correlation between union membership rate in the US, and income share of the top 1%.  The second section of the data covers differences between employee’s opinions on their benefits and spillover income data.  Data reported how in all sectors of employee fringe benefits and amenities, union members consistently reported having access to more compared to their non-union counterparts.  It was also reported that when union membership rose, it caused a wage increase spillover effect to non-union employees.

The Department of Treasury argues that the data suggests that there is a correlation between union membership and income inequality in the US.  In years when union membership was high in the US, wealth was more equitably spread across middle class families via increases in individual wages and increases in availability of benefits.  In years that union membership is low, including this year, wealth is more concentrated in the top one percent of earners, and individual wages and availability of benefits are not as high as they could be.