Young workers give unions new hope

By DEE-ANN DURBIN
AP Business Writer

After decades of decline, U.S. unions have a new reason for hope: younger workers. Workers in their 20s and even in their teens are leading ongoing efforts to unionize Starbucks and other companies. The Alphabet Workers Union, formed last year and now representing 800 Google employees, is run by five people who are under 35. Multiple polls show union approval is high and growing among the youngest workers. And U.S. union membership levels are even ticking upward for workers between 25 and 34, even though it is declining among other age groups. Young workers say they see unions as the best way to combat issues like wage inequality and poor working conditions.