Reports are out today that union membership rose to 12.4% of the nation's work force last year, despite widespread job losses in a troubled economy.

The ranks of organized labor rose by 428,000 workers in 2008, biggest annual gain since the government began compiling the data in 1983, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Wednesday.

It's also the second year in a row that unions have added to their ranks. Membership rose by 311,000 members in 2007, to 12.1% of workers.

Overall, union membership remains well below the peak of 35% during labor's heyday in the 1950s. Membership was about 20% in 1983, first year the bureau began compiling numbers.

Unions have moved aggressively to bolster organizing efforts in recent years, a move that apparently offset the loss of 2.6 million payroll jobs in 2008. The Teamsters Union, one of the nation's largest unions, had its most successful organizing year in decades, with more than 43,000 workers joining.

At the Teamsters I work on a number of different websites that assist organizing and strategic campaigns. I welcome you to check out:

School Bus Workers United
FedXMx.com
Horizon Alaska Teamsters
Asa For Teamsters