Trade union density rate in Canada

Canada: Trade union density rate was 29.39 in 2020. ▼ Falling

Latest (2020)
29.39
Change on year
up 3.9%
World rank
20th
of 86 countries
All-time high
30.16
in 2001
All-time low
28.09
in 2018
Years of data
21
2000–2020

Trade union density rate in Canada, 2000–2020

01020302000201020202000: 30.12001: 30.22002: 30.12003: 30.12004: 29.82005: 29.82006: 29.42007: 29.32008: 29.12009: 29.42010: 29.32011: 292012: 29.32013: 29.22014: 28.42015: 28.62016: 28.42017: 28.42018: 28.12019: 28.32020: 29.4

Source: International Labour Organization.

Analysis

Canada recorded 29.39 for trade union density rate in 2020.

Compared with earlier readings it is up 3.9% on the previous year and up 0.2% over ten years.

Over the whole period, trade union density rate in Canada peaked at 30.16 in 2001 and was at its lowest, 28.09, in 2018.

Canada ranks 20th of 86 countries on this measure, in the top quarter.

The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 21 years of available data.

Trade union density rate in Canada, year by year

Annual values for Trade union density rate in Canada, 2000 to 2020.
Year Value Change
2000 30.1
2001 30.16 +0.2%
2002 30.05 -0.4%
2003 30.09 +0.1%
2004 29.76 -1.1%
2005 29.78 +0.1%
2006 29.39 -1.3%
2007 29.34 -0.2%
2008 29.09 -0.9%
2009 29.39 +1.0%
2010 29.34 -0.2%
2011 28.98 -1.2%
2012 29.28 +1.0%
2013 29.19 -0.3%
2014 28.41 -2.7%
2015 28.59 +0.6%
2016 28.39 -0.7%
2017 28.44 +0.1%
2018 28.09 -1.2%
2019 28.29 +0.7%
2020 29.39 +3.9%

Averages by decade

DecadeAverage LowestHighest Years
2000s 29.72 29.09 30.16 10
2010s 28.7 28.09 29.34 10
2020s 29.39 29.39 29.39 1

Countries ranked near Canada

  1. 17 Mongolia 30.79 compare
  2. 18 Uruguay 30.1 compare
  3. 19 Botswana 29.96 compare
  4. 21 South Africa 29.06 compare
  5. 22 Luxembourg 28.23 compare
  6. 23 Argentina 27.7 compare

See the full ranking of 86 places →

More work & labour data for Canada

All data for Canada →

Frequently asked questions

What is trade union density rate in Canada?
Trade union density rate in Canada was 29.39 in 2020, according to International Labour Organization.
What is the highest trade union density rate recorded in Canada?
The highest recorded value was 30.16 in 2001.
What is the lowest trade union density rate recorded in Canada?
The lowest recorded value was 28.09 in 2018.
How does Canada rank for trade union density rate?
Canada ranks 20th out of 86 countries with data for 2020.
Is trade union density rate rising or falling in Canada?
Over the last ten years it is up 0.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
Where does this Canada data come from?
The figures come from International Labour Organization, published as part of Trade union density rate. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.

Download this data

CSV · JSON — 21 observations, free to reuse under ILO Terms of Use (attribution required).

Share, cite or embed this page

Cite this page

Trade union density rate in Canada. Statizoid, drawing on International Labour Organization. Retrieved 05 September 2026, from https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/trade-union-density-rate/canada/

Embed or link this data

Paste this into a page to link back to these figures. The data itself is free to reuse under ILO Terms of Use (attribution required); please keep the attribution.

<a href="https://labour.statizoid.com/stat/trade-union-density-rate/canada/">Trade union density rate in Canada</a> — Statizoid

About this data

Indicator
Trade union density rate
Source
International Labour Organization
Licence
ILO Terms of Use (attribution required)
Coverage
86 places, 1,182 data points, 2000–2020
Last refreshed

A trade union is defined as a workers' organization constituted for the purpose of furthering and defending the interests of workers. This trade union density rate conveys the number of union members who are employees as a percentage of the total number of employees. For the purpose of this indicator in particular, trade union membership excludes union members who are not in paid employment (self-employed, unemployed, retired, etc.), unless otherwise stated in the notes. The statistics presented in this table result from an ILO data compilation effort (including an annual questionnaire and numerous special enquiries), with contributions from J. Visser. For more information, refer to the Industrial Relations data (IRdata) database description.