Union Numbers Decline

Number of Union Workers in Maryland Plummeted in 2004

Union membership in Maryland dropped by 82,000 people from 2003 to 2004, a reflection of the continuing "demise of the industrial base" in the state, said labor and business officials.

The U.S. Department of Labor said in late January that union membership in Maryland fell from an estimated 354,000 to 272,000, while the share of state workers who were union members fell from 14.3 percent of the work force to 10.9 percent.