Challenge #1 - Answers

1. Pilot: Over 79,000 pilots in the U.S. and Canada are unionized through the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA). Some helicopter pilots are also represented by the  Professional Helicopter Pilots Association International (PHPA), a local of the Office and Professional Employees International Union (OPEIU). 

2. Resident physician: The Service Employees International Union (SEIU)’s Committee of Interns & Residents represents over 37,000 “house staff” of physician residents and interns. They work together to ensure they have a stronger voice within their hospitals and advocate for cost-effective, high quality health care for all. 

3. Flight attendant: 50,000 flight attendants at 20 airlines are unionized through the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA-CWA). American airlines are represented by the Association of Professional Flight Attendants (APFA). 

4. Construction workers: 15.4% of construction and extraction workers in the U.S. are unionized (Bureau of Labor Statistics). They are members of many unions, 14 of which are organized together under the North America's Building Trades Unions (NABTU). 

5. Service technicians: Many electrical workers and broadband and utility technicians are union members! They might be unionized with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) or the Communications Workers of America (CWA).  

6. Baseball player: The Major League Baseball Players Association states that: “Unionization in baseball goes back almost as far as the professional game itself.” They represent MLB Major League players and 5,500 Minor League players. 

7. Landscaper: Landscapers and gardeners have unionized through several different unions, including the Laborers' International Union of North America (LiUNA) and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU).  

8. Baristas: You may have heard the news—recently over 10,500 Starbucks workers have unionized with Starbucks Workers United! Many other coffee shop and retail workers are members of another union, the United Food & Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW). 

Challenge #2 - Answers

9. Nurses: National Nurses United has more than 225,000 union members nationwide! Nurses are also members of various other unions, including American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) and the Service Employees International Union (SEIU). 

10. Firefighters: The International Association of Fire Fighters represents over 350,000 full-time professional fire fighters and emergency medical workers. Their members provide service coverage for more than 85% of the population of the U.S. and Canada. 

11. Journalists: As of 2022, 1 in 6 journalists was part of a union (PEW Research), 27,000 of which are members of The NewsGuild-CWA (TNG-CWA). Behind-the-scenes entertainment staff, including broadcast technicians, are often represented by the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists and Allied Crafts of the United States, Its Territories and Canada (IATSE). 

12. Entertainer: The Actors' Equity Association represents more than 51,000 professional actors and stage managers nationwide—yes, including mimes!  

Challenge #3 - Answers

13. Pharmacist/pharmacy tech: In 2023, after fed-up pharmacy workers at CVS and Walgreens staged walkouts across the U.S., The Pharmacy Guild was formed. Its primary goal? Patient safety. Low staffing and staggering workloads are key points for union negotiations. Pharmacists are also often represented by the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union (UFCW).  

14. Farm worker: Fourteen states currently guarantee collective bargaining rights for farm workers: AZ, CA, CO, HI, KS, KY, LA, MA, NE, NJ, NY, OR, WA and WI. Many are represented by the mighty United Farm Workers (UFW). Visit UFW’s action center to support immigrant workers in the fields today! 

15. Police officer: An estimated 8 in 10 police officers are union members, with most belonging to independent unions. The largest affiliated union is the International Union of Police Officers. 

16. Bus driver: Founded in 1892, the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) has more than 200,000 members, including city bus drivers, ferry operators, and baggage handlers who are fighting for fair wages and safe working conditions. Of course, many school bus drivers are represented by NEA!  

17. Educators: You know the answer to this one! Nearly 3 million educators belong to the National Education Association—or about 1 in 100 Americans! Another 1.8-plus million belong to our friends at the American Federation of Teachers.  

Challenge #4 - Answers

• Delivery driver: The International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents more than 1.3 million workers, including UPS drivers. Recently, the Teamsters also have been negotiating for Amazon drivers and warehouse workers, winning organizing campaigns from California to New York.   
• Government workers: More than a million state and local government workers belong to the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME). Meanwhile, more than 800,000 federal staffers belong to the American Federation of Government Employees, which recently won in district court to protect its members’ collective bargaining rights.  
• Janitorial staff: The 2-million-strong Service Employees Internation Union (SEIU) includes janitorial workers united for fair pay, respect, and the right to join a union. #JusticeforJanitors! And, of course, NEA also represents thousands of school custodians, too!  
• Postal service worker: The American Postal Workers Union represents more than 220,000 postal workers and works to ensure its workers’ fair pay and safety. Anyone remember the Great Postal Strike of 1970? It lasted eight days and occurred when union members saw the stark difference between the pay raises Congress gave them (about 5 percent) and the pay raises that lawmakers gave to themselves (41 percent)!

Union Quiz Answers

• Logo A connects to fact #3. “If they don’t deliver, we don’t deliver.” is the catchphrase UPS workers used in recent contract negotiations. They are represented by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters;
• Logo B connects to fact #1. Members of the United Auto Workers went on a historic 46-day strike in 2023, at locations in 20 states, which led to 25 percent wage increases.
• Logo C connects to fact #4. The International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) primarily represents operating engineers, who work as heavy equipment operators, mechanics, and surveyors in the construction industry, and stationary engineers, who work in operations and maintenance in building and industrial complexes, and in the service industries;
• Logo D connects to fact #2. The NFL Players Association won millions of dollars for medical research in its most recent contract.