Information: USDL 04-418 (202) 691-5174 cbainfo@bls.gov Media Contact: FOR RELEASE: 10:00 A.M. (EST) (202) 691-5902 hoyle_k@bls.gov FRIDAY, MARCH 19, 2004 Internet Address: http://www.bls.gov/cba/home.htm MAJOR WORK STOPPAGES IN 2003 The number of workers idled, the number of days of idleness, and the percent of estimated working time lost because of strikes and lockouts rose in 2003, but were still low by historical standards, the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. Fourteen major work stoppages began during the year, idling 129,200 workers and resulting in 4.1 million workdays of idleness (about 1 out of every 10,000 available workdays). Comparable figures for 2002 were 19 stoppages, 46,000 workers idled, and 660,000 days of idleness. (See table 1 and charts A-C.) The major work stoppages series, which dates back to 1947, covers strikes and lockouts involving 1,000 workers or more and lasting at least one shift. For work stoppages that are still ongoing at the end of the calendar year, only those days of idleness in the calendar year are counted. Of the major work stoppages beginning in 2003, 12 were in private industry and two were in state and local government. In private industry, the largest number of stoppages occurred in the manufacturing sector (three) and in the retail trade sector (three). In state and local government, one stoppage was in the transportation and warehousing sector and one was in public administration. Five work stoppages beginning in 2003 accounted for 82 percent of all workers idled. The largest was between Albertsons, Ralphs Grocery Company, and Vons and the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW), with 67,300 workers idled. The second largest was a stoppage between General Electric Company and the Communications Workers (IUE-CWA) and the United Electrical Workers (UE-Ind.) that idled 17,500 workers. The third was a stoppage between Dierbergs Markets, Schnucks, and Shop `n Save and the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) that idled 10,200. The two work stoppages in state and local government were the next largest. A work stoppage between the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the United Transportation Union (UTU-Ind.) idled 6,200 workers while a work stoppage between The County of San Joaquin and the Service Employees (SEIU) idled 5,000 workers. (See table 2.) Industry sectors with the most days of idleness during the year due to work stoppages were retail trade (3,689,000 days), transportation and warehousing (178,700 days), and manufacturing (82,800 days). Nine-tenths of the year's days of idleness stemmed from three major disputes, including the disputes between Albertsons, Ralphs Grocery Company, and Vons and the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) (3,374,200 days), between Dierbergs Markets, Schnucks, and Shop `n Save and the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) (183,600 days), and between the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the United Transportation Union (UTU-Ind.) (148,800 days). The average length of work stoppages beginning in 2003 was 22 days, and 71 percent of all work stoppages lasted 30 days or less. The longest work stoppage was the dispute between Albertsons, Ralphs Grocery Company, and Vons and the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) that began on October 13 and was still in effect on December 31. It also was the only dispute in 2003 that lasted more than 50 days (See Table A.) Table A. Duration of work stoppages beginning in 2002 and 2003 Duration 2002 2003 Number Percent Number Percent 1-2 days 2 11 1 7 3-10 days 4 21 6 43 11-20 days 5 26 1 7 21-30 days 3 16 2 14 31-40 days 1 5 2 14 41-50 days 3 16 1 7 Over 50 days 1 5 1 7 Note: Percent totals may not add to 100 because of rounding. The term "major work stoppage" includes both worker- initiated strikes and employer-initiated lockouts that involve 1,000 workers or more. BLS does not distinguish between strikes and lockouts in its statistics. Information on work stoppages is obtained from reports from the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service and state labor market information offices and from media sources such as The Daily Labor Report and the Wall Street Journal. One or both of the parties involved in the work stoppage (employer, union, etc.) is then contacted to verify the duration of and the number of workers idled by the stoppage. Table 1. Work stoppages involving 1,000 or more workers, 1947-2003 Days idle(2) Number of Number of stoppages workers Period beginning involved(1) Percent of in period (thousands) Number estimated (thousands) working time(3) 1947................. 270 1,629 25,720 (4) 1948................. 245 1,435 26,127 .22 1949................. 262 2,537 43,420 .38 1950................. 424 1,698 30,390 .26 1951................. 415 1,462 15,070 .12 1952................. 470 2,746 48,820 .38 1953................. 437 1,623 18,130 .14 1954................. 265 1,075 16,630 .13 1955................. 363 2,055 21,180 .16 1956................. 287 1,370 26,840 .20 1957................. 279 887 10,340 .07 1958................. 332 1,587 17,900 .13 1959................. 245 1,381 60,850 .43 1960................. 222 896 13,260 .09 1961................. 195 1,031 10,140 .07 1962................. 211 793 11,760 .08 1963................. 181 512 10,020 .07 1964................. 246 1,183 16,220 .11 1965................. 268 999 15,140 .10 1966................. 321 1,300 16,000 .10 1967................. 381 2,192 31,320 .18 1968................. 392 1,855 35,367 .20 1969................. 412 1,576 29,397 .16 1970................. 381 2,468 52,761 .29 1971................. 298 2,516 35,538 .19 1972................. 250 975 16,764 .09 1973................. 317 1,400 16,260 .08 1974................. 424 1,796 31,809 .16 1975................. 235 965 17,563 .09 1976................. 231 1,519 23,962 .12 1977................. 298 1,212 21,258 .10 1978................. 219 1,006 23,774 .11 1979................. 235 1,021 20,409 .09 1980................. 187 795 20,844 .09 1981................. 145 729 16,908 .07 1982................. 96 656 9,061 .04 1983................. 81 909 17,461 .08 1984................. 62 376 8,499 .04 1985................. 54 324 7,079 .03 1986................. 69 533 11,861 .05 1987................. 46 174 4,481 .02 1988................. 40 118 4,381 .02 1989................. 51 452 16,996 .07 1990................. 44 185 5,926 .02 1991................. 40 392 4,584 .02 1992................. 35 364 3,989 .01 1993................. 35 182 3,981 .01 1994................. 45 322 5,021 .02 1995................. 31 192 5,771 .02 1996................. 37 273 4,889 .02 1997................. 29 339 4,497 .01 1998................. 34 387 5,116 .02 1999................. 17 73 1,996 .01 2000................. 39 394 20,419 .06 2001................. 29 99 1,151 (5) 2002................. 19 46 660 (5) 2003................. 14 129.2 4,091.2 0.01 January..... 1 17.5 48.8 (5) February.... 0 0 0 0.00 March....... 2 4.0 18.5 (5) April....... 1 4.0 40.0 (5) May......... 1 1.3 7.8 (5) June........ 1 4.0 16.0 (5) July........ 0 0 12.0 (5) August...... 3 8.2 35.9 (5) September... 0 0 51.3 (5) October..... 5 82.2 1,168.5 0.04 November.... 0 8.0(6) 1,219.0 0.05 December.... 0 0 1,473.4 0.05 1 Workers are counted more than once if they are involved in more than one stoppage during the reference period. 2 Days idle includes all stoppages in effect during the reference period. For work stoppages that are still ongoing at the end of the calendar year, only those days of idleness in the calendar year are counted. 3 Agricultural and government employees are included in the calculation of estimated working time; private households, forestry, and fishery employees are excluded. 4 Data not available. 5 Less than .005. 6 Reflects an increase in the number of workers idled by a work stoppage in effect. NOTE: Dash indicates no data for this category. Table 2. Work stoppages involving 5,000 or more workers beginning in 2003 Industry Beginning Ending Number of Organizations involved code(2) date date workers(3) Days idle and location(1) General Electric Company Communication Workers (IUE-CWA); United Electrical Workers (UE-Ind.)... 334612 1/14/03 1/15/03 17,500 35,000 The County of San Joaquin Stockton, CA Service Employees (SEIU).............. 921190 8/04/03 8/08/03 5,000 25,000 Dierbergs Markets, Schnucks, and Shop 'n Save St. Louis, MO United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW)................................ 445110 10/07/03 10/31/03 10,200 183,600 Albertsons, Ralphs Grocery Company, and Vons Southern CA United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW)................................ 445110 10/12/03 (4) 67,300(5) 3,374,200 Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority Los Angeles, CA United Transportation Union (UTU-Ind.)............................ 485111 10/14/03 11/17/03 6,200 148,800 1 Labor organizations are affiliated with the AFL-CIO except where noted as Independent (Ind.). 2 Industry code is from the 2002 NAICS (North American Industry Classification System). 3 The number of workers involved is rounded to the nearest 100. 4 As of December 31, 2003 the work stoppage is still ongoing. 5 The number of workers idled was 59,300; on November 24, 2003 it increased to 67,300 an on December 23, 2003 it decreased to 61,300.