More Indiana workplaces are trying to unionize INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — New federal data shows more workers are moving to form unions in Indiana. The National Labor Relations Board released statistics after the end of its 2024 fiscal year, which ended in September. It shows that petitions for union elections nearly tripled in the last three years. In 2021 the NLRB received 23 petitions and in 2024 that jumped to 66. That’s an increase of about 187%. The Midwest saw the largest increase in union petitions since 2021. (Provided table/National Labor Relations Board) The data also shows that the number of complaints for unfair labor practices in Indiana increased by 35% in that period. The number of unfair labor filings increased by 52% since 2021. (Provided Table/National Labor Relations Board) According to the NLRB, the trend goes beyond the Hoosier state. National data shows that the number of petitions more than doubled in the same time frame. In the agency’s breakdown, the Midwest saw the biggest increase in filings compared to any other region. Since 2021, they increased 138%. Marquita Walker, interim chair and Associate Professor in the Department of Labor Studies at Indiana University, says she expects the trend to continue. “This is a time in which the collective has become really important to workers,” Walker said. “Coming out of COVID, the interest some workers had just spread and has become stronger and more intense.” The increase is likely because of a couple of factors, according to Walker. First, she says the Biden administration filled several vacancies on the NLRB. That move made it easier to reduce a backlog of cases. However, more important in Walker’s eyes is a decision the agency made just over a year ago in a case involving Cemex, a construction company based in Mexico. Workers were attempting to unionize at the company’s southern California facilities. In the decision, the agency ruled that companies must respond to union election filings. “It isn’t that employers love to do that,” Walker said. “It is because the law now says that they are required to do that. The law changed a little over a year ago to favor certification of elections for unions.” Walker expects more workers to try to form unions in the next few years. She attributes this to momentum brought on by many high-profile strikes across the country. The professor also adds that several pro-worker rulings brought on by the Biden admission contribute to the trend. However, Walker says this is part of a usual cycle of power between unions and private companies. She expects the increase to eventually taper off. “This is a good time for organization,” Walker said. “But, I suspect within the next decade that employer effort … will find ways to … dull decisions like the Cemex decision.” Workers at Indiana Box Company in Greenfield are the most recent in the Indianapolis metro area to file to form a union. They submitted their petition on Oct. 17, a petition not included in the NLRB numbers.