Blame Politics For Unions' Decline, Study Says

Politics is to blame for the decline of unions in the U.S., according to a new report by the Center For Economic And Policy Research, a progressive think tank. Of the world's 21 richest countries, those with more of a free market philosophy witnessed the greatest drop in union influence over the last 30 years.

Wealthy European nations, as well as Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the U.K., Ireland and the U.S., have near identical levels of globalization and technology, says the report, therefore those two factors can't explain the precipitous decline of American unions. Over half of the workers in several of these countries are unionized, after all, compared to just 12 percent in the U.S.