Petitions for union elections rose 53 per cent this fiscal year, federal labour officials said Thursday, as workers gained more bargaining power in a tight labour market.

More than 2,500 workplaces filed for a representation election between October 2021 and September 2022, up from 1,638 the prior year. The National Labor Relations Board said the 2,510 filings marked the highest number of petitions it had received since FY2016.

The jump in petitions comes as a tight labour market has given US workers the upper hand in their workplaces. Workers at Trader Joe’s grocery stores, Chipotle restaurants, Amazon fulfilment centres, and various Starbucks cafés have all filed to form unions in recent months.