Nurses Web Tool screenshotsThe Nurse Unionization Data Tool allows the user to explore trends in union membership and union contract coverage for registered nurses in the United States. The tool can be used to generate trend plots and maps showing how these quantities change over time, filtered and/or grouped according to a variety of demographics.

The tool operates on data derived from the Current Population Survey (CPS) public use microdata (see the official CPS website for information on the raw CPS data). Each entry in the data used by the tool corresponds to an individual interviewed as part of the CPS, and includes various demographic data on that individual, as well as tags indicating whether the individual is a union member or covered by a union contract. Each entry also includes the year in which the individual was interviewed, and a statistical weight used to calculate union membership and union contract coverage proportions. 

The web tool offers two ways to explore union membership and union contract coverage: by examining trends and by examining patterns by state. The data can be filtered according to many variables including sex, age, race, level of education, and U.S. state where the individual resides, and can also be downloaded to conduct more customized analysis.

The data here provide useful illustrations and information about trends. Users should note that some samples are too small to be truly representative of the larger population.

This tool was created by Benjamin Noland. The Center for Work and Health also thanks Professors Douglas Kruse and Barry T. Hirsch for helpful advice with the development of the web tool.