Workers
A new survey reveals a preparedness gap among companies as they navigate a new labor-relations landscape that includes shifting employee expectations and escalated collective bargaining and organizing tactics.
The “2025 Labor Survey Report” from the giant labor and employment law legal firm Littler draws on insights from nearly 800 respondents — 42% of whom hold C-suite positions — and include in-house lawyers, business executives, and human resources professionals. Most respondents (93%) are based in the U.S., with the remainder serving at organizations with U.S. operations.
While 1 in 4 employers whose workplaces are not fully unionized report experiencing organizing activity over the past two years, only 9% of non-unionized employers feel very prepared to effectively respond to union organizing activity. Among those with unionized employees, just 18% feel very prepared to handle more aggressive collective bargaining tactics such as strikes, walkouts, or coordinated corporate campaigns.
The majority of employers surveyed (85%) that do not have any unionized employees believe that if a union organizing drive were held today, less than 30% of their employee base would sign a union authorization card. However, these businesses may be underestimating the willingness of their employees to at least consider joining a union, according to Littler officials. Additionally, in the digital era — when employees have ready access to organizing information and seamless ways to connect quickly with one another — organizing efforts could be developing even if leadership is aware of them.
“Unions are devoting more resources to turning employee curiosity into actual support, targeting employees in industries that have not historically been receptive to their message, and using high-profile corporate campaigns and strikes to gain attention,” Jonathan Levine, co-chair of Littler’s Labor Management Relations Practice Group, said in a statement. “This won’t change with a more management-friendly National Labor Relations Board but can be effectively addressed by employers who recognize that most employees still prefer a direct relationship with an employer that makes engagement a top priority as opposed to a talking point.”
To that end, both non-unionized and unionized employers are taking steps to prepare for labor-related activity, including implementing or expanding employee engagement programs and conducting training for managers and supervisors.
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However, according to the report, fewer than half of respondents at organizations with some unionized employees have developed a strike or business disruption contingency plan (44%) or prepared strategic and economic analyses to assist with bargaining (34%). This comes even as 42% of respondents with unionized employees say that union leaders have become more confrontational and aggressive over the past year.
“Organizations may have preliminary plans in place when it comes to running their businesses amid a strike or preparing strategic and economic analyses for bargaining. However, these plans may not have the teeth to stand up to an actual work stoppage or complicated negotiations,” said Tanja Thompson, co-chair of Littler’s Labor Management Relations Practice Group. “Adequate preparedness helps create strategies that are lawful, effective, and actionable.”
The report also identifies key factors motivating organizing activity. Aside from pay and benefits, the leading drivers for employee support of such efforts include work/life balance (38%), desire for input into business decisions (31%), and job security (29%), according to employers that have experienced union organizing over the past two years.
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