Working Paper: NBER ID: w2563
Authors: Richard B. Freeman; Morris M. Kleiner
Abstract: This study investigates the impact of union organization on the wages and labor practices of establishments newly organized in the 1980s using a research design in which establishments are 'paired' with their closest nonunion competitor. There are two major findings. First. unionism had only a modest effect on wages in the newly organized plants, which contrasts sharply with the huge union wage impact found in cross-section comparisons of union and nonunion individuals on Current Population Survey and related data tapes. Second, in contrast co its modest impact on wages, new unionization substantially altered several personnel practices. creating grievance systems, greater seniority protection. and job bidding and posting. That newly organized establishments adopt union working conditions but grant only modest increases in wages suggests that 'collective voice' rather than monopoly wage gains is the key to understanding what unionism does in the economy.
Keywords: unionization; wages; working conditions; NLRB elections
JEL Codes: J51; J52
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| New unionization (J51) | Wages (J31) |
| New unionization (J51) | Working conditions (J81) |
| Establishments facing organizing drives (L29) | Wages and benefits (J31) |
| Economic conditions of the 1980s (E65) | Wage effects (J31) |
| Characteristics of establishments (D20) | Wage effects (J31) |