TENS of thousands more workers have joined a trade union in the past year, official figures revealed yesterday.

Annual membership figures collated by the Office for National Statistics show an increase of 36,000 (0.6 per cent) between 2014 and 2015.

That included a fifth consecutive increase in trade union membership in the private sector, where there are now almost 2.7 million members — an increase of 6,000 since 2014.

That took the total number of union members in Britain to 6.49 million, which is just under half the historic peak of 13 million in 1979.

TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady said: “It’s great news that more people are part of a trade union. Joining a trade union is the best way to get fair pay and respect at work.

“Employers benefit from their staff being in trade unions too, such as the workplace training unions help organise. And the economy benefits from the boost to productivity that comes from a trained and well organised workforce.”

However, because of a corresponding rise in employment, the proportion of the total workforce who are trade union members fell slightly by 0.3 per cent to 24.7 per cent — the lowest rate of union density recorded since 1995.

Female, public-sector and older workers continue to be more likely to be trade union members.

Disabled people were also more likely to be members at 29 per cent compared to 24 per cent for those without a disability.

Wales, Scotland and northern England has the highest union density, while London and the east of England has the lowest.