Final answer:
Union membership in the United States has fallen largely due to changes in the economy, such as the shift from manufacturing to service industries, increased global competition, improved workplace protections, and laws that make unionizing more difficult, like the Taft-Hartley Act.
Step-by-step explanation:
Fallen; laws enacted making it more difficult to unionize.
The decline in union membership can be attributed to multiple factors. Firstly, there has been a significant shift from manufacturing to service industries, where unionization is traditionally less prevalent. Throughout the years, as manufacturing jobs decreased, service sector jobs—which are not as heavily unionized—increased significantly. Secondly, the U.S. has experienced the force of globalization leading to increased competition from foreign producers, which has affected domestic manufacturing where unions were once strong. Thirdly, there has been a reduced desire for unions due to the workplace protection laws now in place that provide some of the benefits unions traditionally fought for. Finally, changes in the legal environment, such as the passage of the Taft-Hartley Act in 1947, have made it more difficult to form unions, as it allowed workers to opt out of unions at their workplace, thereby creating a less encouraging climate for union membership.