A new report says a little more than one-quarter of Hawaiçi’s labor force belongs to a union, which makes the state the second-most unionized state in the nation after New York.

The study done by the progressive Washington-based Center for Economic and Policy Research found that 25.2 percent of Hawaiçi’s workers are union members, twice athe national median of 12.6 percent. It said 127,792 of the state’s labor force was unionized last year. New York led the nation at 26.4 percent.
The report also said unionization is strongly associated with increases in overall compensation, including hourly wages, health insurance and pension benefits.
The study follows a similar report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics in late January. That report also found Hawaiçi was the second most unionized state after New York, but contained slightly different numbers. It found 24.3 percent of workers were in unions here, down from 25.5 percent in 2008.