ANALYSIS: Union Workers’ Pay Raises Take a Downward Turn

Pay raises negotiated by unions fell to a four-year low in the third quarter, according to Bloomberg Law’s latest Quarterly Union Wage Data report. The quarterly decrease ends a lengthy up-and-down pattern in collective bargaining on a decidedly downward note for organized labor, and likely signals the end of an unprecedented surge in unions’ negotiating power that began in the wake of the Covid-19 recession.

First-year pay raises negotiated in 166 labor contracts ratified in Q3 2025 averaged 5.0%, down from the average of 5.5% for 183 contracts ratified in Q2, according to the report. It’s the lowest quarterly average ...