Strikes: Statistics and Data

Articles frequently include data and analysis of significant work stoppages, including size, location, and length of strikes and lockouts as well as bargaining outcomes.

An annual review of trends in work stoppages including statistics on issue, industry, location, and size of stoppages.

Annual review of trends in work stoppages including statistics on issue, industry, location, and size of stoppages.

Bloomberg BNA Labor PLUS contains five labor databases containing several hundred thousand records. See the Work Stoppages database for strike data by employer, union, location, industry, date, number of workers, and duration.

The Work Stoppages page provides information about U. S. strikes and other work stoppages that affect over 1000 workers. This includes annual reports from 1993-Present, a table of major work stoppages from 1993-Present, and annual work stoppage data from 1947-Present. Company names, industries, and summary data are provided. For work stoppages involving fewer than 1000 workers, see the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Services' Work Stoppages (Continuing and Ending).

The goal of the project is to provide a comprehensive database of strike and labor protest activity across the United States in order to better inform and support labor movement activists, policymakers, and scholars. Actions can be filtered by worker demands, industry, participant numbers, duration, state and other variables.

Annual report of U.S. work stoppages compiled by the ILR School's Labor Action Tracker. Free to download as an accessible PDF.

A monthly summary of strike activity during the survey reference pay period. Covers strikes of 1,000 or more workers who were idle during the entire reference pay period.

Monthly summaries of strike activity from 1990 to the present. Covers strikes of 1,000 or more workers who were idle during the entire reference pay period.

Dataset created from the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service's records on work stoppages from 1984-2020. This dataset also helpfully shows stoppages including fewer than 1000 workers.

"The Bulletins of the U.S. Department of Labor and of the Bureau of Labor Statistics include many of the most penetrating and comprehensive reports made by the U.S. government on a wide array of issues affecting labor in the United States and around the world. Until 1912, each of the bulletins featured scholarly essays as well as statistical compilations, digests of legislation, court decisions, arbitration proceedings, reports of private- and public-sector labor agreements, wholesale and consumer price reports, and other data. By 1912, the specific studies and statistical compilations became so large that separate bulletins were assigned to each of them."

Contains work stoppage data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics from 1881-1998. To access relevant tables keyword search "work stoppages."

Bulletin of the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, No. 61. Contains strike data and analysis by industry, cause, state, city, union affiliation outcome, and gender of striker.

The dataset for Peter Turchin's "Dynamics of Political Instability in the United States, 1780-2010" contains hard to find information on early American strikes. To access this dataset, scroll to Vol. 49, No. 4. In the spreadsheet, search for "labor" under subtype.