Union membership has hit record lows as fewer young people join up despite the labour movement’s high-profile co-operation with government to help keep workers employed during the coronavirus pandemic. Only 14.3 per cent of the Australian workforce, or 1.5 million people, were part of a union in August, down from 14.6 per cent last time the Australian Bureau of Statistics ran the numbers in 2018.

Union membership dips again but members earn much more