Labor Day Fact: Unions Unpopular
James Sherk /
While Americans now celebrate the end of summer over Labor Day weekend, Labor Day originally began in the 1890s as a celebration of “the strength and esprit de corps” of labor unions. In their early days unions fought primarily to improve working conditions and protect workers rights. Large majorities of Americans have long approved of role labor unions play in society.
Until this Labor Day.
Gallup reports that, for the first time since they began polling Americans on the question in the 1930s, less than half of Americans – 48 percent – approve of labor unions. This represents a sharp drop from just a year ago, when 59 percent of Americans approved of labor unions.
