Heavy job losses during the current recession have caused the ranks of private-sector unions to plummet, resulting in government employees becoming the largest unionized force in the United States. Data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows there are almost 8 million public sector union workers in the country, but only 7.4 million in the private sector. Unions in various industries, like construction and manufacturing, lost a total of approximately 600,000 members from 2008 to 2009. Today, it is estimated that only 7.2% of all private-sector workers belong to a union, the lowest rate since 1900. Meanwhile, government union ranks continue to swell, from 36.8% of all public sector employees in 2008 to 37.4% in 2009.