This ‘union-busting’ calculator arms workers with information

When employees dare to organize their workplace, a $1.7 billion industry of consultants and law firms springs into action. According to the Labor Department, something like 75% of employers enlist union avoidance consultants to quash union efforts. Some of them, including major companies like Amazon and 3M, spend many millions of dollars on those consultants, who can also double as legal representation—while the law firms that have made a business out of fighting unions reportedly earn millions of dollars for their work with employers. But very often, the workers who take on major corporations have little insight into what they’re up against. As of 2025, about 16.5 million workers are represented by a union—the highest share in about 16 years, but a much smaller figure than the 50 million Americans who have expressed a desire to join a union. Labor advocates argue that’s partly because companies put so much money behind fighting unions. The nonprofit workers’ rights watchdog LaborLab has launched tools today that could help give workers greater visibility into how their employer may push back on their organizing efforts, and what they’re willing to spend in the process. A search t…