US employers spend $1.5 billion annually on labor union opposition efforts, according to an Economic Policy Institute report. This spending includes hiring consultants and law firms specializing in union avoidance during elections and organizing campaigns. Union-avoidance consultants alone cost companies $442 million each year, with Amazon spending $26.6 million in 2025 on these services.

The report attributes the decline in union membership from 20.3% in 1983 to 10% today partly to union-avoidance efforts. Despite this decline, nearly 70% of Americans approve of labor unions. Law firms like Littler Mendelson, which have represented Amazon, Starbucks, and Delta, oppose legislation expanding worker rights through their Workplace Policy Institute.

Employers violate labor law in 41.5% of union elections, with workers waiting an average of 465 days to reach a first contract. Starbucks workers have yet to secure a contract since the first US store won a union election in 2021. This spending represents money not invested in workers' workplaces, according to report authors who call it immoral and offensive to democratic values.