Do You Think AFL-CIO President Shuler Can Make Good on Her 2 Million Union Worker Bet

AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler, just reelected to a second term, pledged to unionize 2 million workers in five years. And she might just do it.

In 2022 she set a goal of 1 million in a decade. Unions hit it in three.

But look at the number underneath the headline. Union membership reached a 16-year high in 2025 — and the share of American workers in unions still sits around 10% (much less in private sector), down from 20% in 1983.

Density keeps falling even as raw numbers rise.

Shuler named the uphill battles she faces to reach her milestones: a hobbled NLRB, DOGE rewriting federal bargaining rights, stalled legislation.

To me, 2 million new members barely moves the density needle against a growing workforce. Don’t forget all the baby boomers that will continue to exit the workforce.

Does 2 million new members even replace the retiring ones, or will union numbers continue to fall?