Private-sector union membership surged last year to 7.3 million, and membership in public-sector organized labor slid to 7.2 million. This marks the first time in five years that the total private-sector membership actually exceeded that of its federal, state and local government counterpart.

According to Labor Department statistics released Friday, private-sector membership grew by nearly 300,000 last year, but public-sector numbers fell by about 100,000. Union membership remains much more common among government workers, though, with 35.3 percent of them organized. Just 6.7 percent of the private sector is organized.