Showing papers in "Journal of Labor Research in 1995"

The Extent and Consequences of High School Employment

Abstract: During the mid-1970s, a number of prestigious commissions convened to study the problems of adolescents reached the common conclusion that additional early work experience would foster the development of personal responsibility, smooth the transition from youth to adulthood, and improve educational performance and occupational attainment. Shortly thereafter, a number of federal initiatives were passed with the goal of increasing the employment experience of youths. These recommendations were made in the absence of hard empirical evidence that increased job-holding caused or even was correlated with favorable outcomes. Economic theory also fails to provide unambiguous predictions concerning the efficacy of youth employment. For example, the human capital model identifies both potential benefits and costs of working. On the one hand, time devoted to jobs could detract from potentially more productive educational investments. On the other, the employment might provide skills and knowledge which increase future productivity and complement in-class learning. Early work experience could also speed the process by which youths obtain positions where there is a good match between job requirements and worker qualifications.

Part-Time employment: Reasons, demographics, and trends

Abstract: worked part time, that is, less than 35 hours a week. This group has been studied frequently as concern over changes in the quality of jobs has grown. Several reports have asserted that an increasing share of the U.S. work force has become part time, because employers have used such employment to cut labor costs. The reports suggested that, as employers offered more part-time jobs than employees were willing to accept, the number of involuntary part-time employees, those who want full-time jobs but must settle for part-time work, increased dramatically, l Certainly, a rise in involuntary part-time employment should cause concern, since it represents an underutilization of the nation's labor resources similar to unemployment. Nevertheless, it should be noted that the vast majority of persons who work part time (71 percent) still do so voluntarily. I examine the differences between the voluntary and involuntary part-time employees. The data show that part-time employees can be classified in three distinct groups, based on their reasons for working a part-time schedule and their usual weekly work schedule. These groups differ in a number of ways, including the characteristics typical of the people in them, the industries in which they are found, and their pattern of growth over the last two decades. I also examine some new data on part-time employment available from the revised Current Population Survey (CPS) which began in January 1994. This revised survey should expand and improve the information about part-time employment. Before examining the data, the source of the information and the basic concepts and definitions relating to part-time work are described.

Dual commitment: Unique construct or epiphenomenon?

Abstract: Research on dual commitment has been criticized for failing to establish that dual commitment is a unique construct with significant explanatory power beyond that of employer commitment and union commitment. Using data for a sample of shop stewards, this analysis shows that dual commitment does have unique predictive power for steward grievance processing behaviors and grievance procedure outcomes. Consequently, models relating employer commitment (in unionized settings) or union commitment to behaviors or outcomes will be misspecified if they do not include dual commitment as a unique construct, and statistical estimates of these models will be subject to specification bias.

Collective bargaining and the determinants of teachers’ salaries

Abstract: Using a national sample of public high schools, we find that bargaining spillovers play an important role in teachers’ labor markets. The spillover variable consistently indicates a larger bargaining effect than does the collective bargaining coverage dummy. We estimate that a 10 percent increase in the state density of teachers’ unions increases the highest teacher salaries by 2.6 percent and the lowest by 0.2 percent. Consistent with prior research, teacher union density was most strongly associated with highest salaries and had a nonsignificant positive association with lowest salaries. Teachers’ unions also affect the structural determinants of teachers’ salaries, offering some additional evidence supporting a median voter model. The proportion of unionized teachers with higher levels of education and experience (i.e., the highest paid) is positively related to highest salaries. Finally, our results confirm the importance of demand factors in teacher wage determination.

Empirical evidence on the union free-rider problem: Do right-to-work laws matter?

Abstract: This study provides detailed statistics by state, industry, occupation, and worker characteristics on private sector wage and salary workers covered by union collective bargaining agreements but who are not union members. A distinction is made between those workers who value the benefits of coverage more than the cost of membership, the true free riders, and those who do not, the induced riders. A probit union membership equation is estimated on a sample which excludes the covered nonmembers. Predicted probabilities are then calculated from the estimated model, yielding a quantifiable measure of the true free-rider problem.

Right-to-work laws and union density: New evidence from micro data

Abstract: Although union density is much lower in Right-to-Work (RTW) states than in states permitting union shops, most studies have found that after correcting for omitted-variable and simultaneity biases, RTW laws do not have independent impact on union density. However, these studies typically use data sets which include certain government, agricultural, supervisory and transportation workers who are not subject to RTW legislation thus diluting the effect of RTW laws. When these employees are excluded from the data set, we find that RTW laws do significantly affect union density in the private sector.

State and local government wage differentials: An intrastate analysis

Abstract: Previous estimates of state and local government wage differentials have been typically based on data aggregated across all states, and such aggregation may produce seriously misleading differential estimates. We estimate intrastate earnings differentials for the state and local sectors in Wisconsin, four other midwestern states, and two states outside the midwest. There is substantial variation in the differentials: aggregated differentials can be misleading. Our work also confirms that state and local government labor markets have reduced earnings dispersion and investigates the possibility that higher public sector earnings may attract an “over-qualified” work force.

Member support for union mergers: An analysis of an affiliation referendum

Abstract: A changing labor relations climate has caused many national unions to merge with smaller independent unions in recent years. One aspect of the merger process concerns the willingness of independent union members to support affiliation with a national union (Chaison, 1986). This article examines the determinants of indivudual-level voting behavior using data gathered from members of an independent union who rejected a proposed affiliation with a national union in a membership referendum. Logistic regression results indicate that affiliation supporters perceived the affiliation as improving union effectiveness, were influenced by social support among co-workers in favor of the merger, and perceived the saliency of the independent union’s support for the affiliation proposal. Conversely, affiliation opposition was influenced by the employer’s “vote no” campaign and by perceptions that affiliation would lead to an increased probability of strikes and to future increases in dues.

The impact of deregulation on labor demand in class-I railroads

Abstract: This paper examines the impact of the Staggers Rail Act of 1980 on labor demand in Class-I railroads during 1961–1990. The demand for labor is a function of output, hourly wage rates, a time trend, and a vector of interactive dummy variables. Since deregulation, the labor demand curve has shifted downward; wage elasticities have become more elastic, ranging from −0.668 in 1980 to −1.187 in 1990; output elasticities trended upward from 0.557 to 0.809; and the marginal product of labor rose from 3.421 to 5.296 during 1980–1990. These findings suggest that unions’ bargaining power has declined, that the total wage bill is likely to decrease if the real wage rate rises further, and that cost savings and efficiency gains are realized through increases in the marginal product of labor.

The role of management attorneys in union organizing campaigns

Abstract: We examine the role and effect of management attorneys in union organizing campaigns by conducting in-depth interviews with a number of management and union attorneys, union organizers, and NLRB administrators. Hypotheses are developed for future empirical testing.

Public policy and part-time employment

Abstract: What are the policy implications of these findings? One thing is clear: Recently employers have avoided hiring full-time employees With the dramatic slowing in the growth of full-time jobs has come a rise in the relative importance of part-time employment, particularly of the involuntary kind The root cause of this phenomenon is suggested by the history of the past two decades, which contain periods of both extremely weak and very strong full-time job growth The pattern is obvious: When there is strong full-time job growth, involuntary part-time work fades in importance One other pattern is also evident: The periods of relatively weak full-time job growth and increasing importance of involuntary part-time employment are also times of growth in levels of income taxation and the volume of governmental regulation By contrast, the period of very pronounced growth in full-time employment and reduced incidence of involuntary part-time work is characterized by lowered income tax rates and the relaxing of governmental regulations From the policy standpoint, it appears that if involuntary part-time work is a problem, the most direct way to deal with it is to return to the economic policies of the 1981–1989 era that generated such remarkable overall job growth in the American economy

The internal union political imperative for UAW pattern bargaining

Abstract: Like many industrial unions, the UAW places great emphasis on pattern-following contract settlements. However, research on the rationales for pattern bargaining has been scarce, and evidence testing these rationales has been absent. The usual rationale for pattern bargaining is to take wages out of competition. However, this paper presents evidence of important internal union political reasons for pattern bargaining. If intra-union wage comparisons cause union members to feel unfairly treated, elected leaders will be challenged. Thus, the UAW leadership pursues pattern bargaining to minimize political conflicts and maintain stability. Unless you know where you came from you don’t have the sense of direction that will lead you to the goals you seek. Walter P. Reuther That word “solidarity” isn’t rhetoric. For a union, it’s everything. Bob White

Self-interests and Group-Interests in Employee Involvement Programs: A Case Study*

Abstract: What happens in a unionized setting when a participatory management system is adopted? This question is examined based on a field study of a union manufacturing facility that has been operating under a gainsharing system for four years As suggested by the political science literature on transforming political systems from authoritarian rule to democracies, the events resemble a complicated chess game among management, union officers, and union members pursuing their self-interests or group-interests during and after the transitional process Although gainsharing bonuses have been minimal, the democratization of organizational structures and relationships has generated multiple beneficial organizational and individual outcomes for management and union members

The changing character of strikes involving permanent striker replacements, 1935–1990

Abstract: Using NLRB cases reporting hiring of striker replacements, I provide a longitudinal analysis of 165 strikes from 1935–1990. Strikes since 1981 most closely resembled strikes occurring from 1938–1947: They lasted longer and involved more strikers and more replacements than strikes in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s. Interestingly, NLRB disposition of employer unfair labor practice charges remained fairly constant throughout the 55 years analyzed and overwhelmingly favored unions. Although my findings are preliminary, they suggest that more empirical analysis of replacement strikes is warranted. I also suggest how some existing strike models can be readily adapted to explain replacement strike phenomena.

Part-time pay

Abstract: Much of the popular discussion about what has happened to jobs and wages in the U.S. economy in recent years has sketched out a fairly bleak picture. Stagnant real family incomes, declining real wages for workers without professional credentials, growing wage inequality because of the increased importance of skills, and downsizing by firms that had been viewed as sources of stable jobs that pay good wages these have all been common themes. Part-time work has also often been disparaged as a part of this broader picture.

The impact of part-time employment on union density

Abstract: Because part-time employees are less likely to be unionized than full-timers, increases in part-time employment may lower unionization rates. However, the size of the reduction, after controlling for other factors, has not been estimated. My results obtained from a probit analysis indicate that part-time status has a small, but significant, negative effect on the probability that a worker is a union member. Not surprisingly, as the working hours of part-time employees decrease, the negative effect increases. The results of this analysis also show that the negative effect of part-time variables had decreased between 1973 and 1989.

Doublebreasted operations and the decline of construction unionism

Abstract: Labor relations in the construction industry are conducted under a legal framework that is both different and more favorable to unions than is that in industry generally. One aspect of this favored union environment is that construction employers are more subject to challenge than other employers if they operate both union and nonunion subsidiaries (“doublebreasted operations”). For almost a decade, the construction unions have attempted to obtain legislation disallowing this practice on the erroneous claims that it is unique to the construction industry and responsible for the decline of construction unions. This article examines the facts of the case and concludes that having both union and nonunion construction subsidiaries is no different from having both union and nonunion manufacturing subsidiaries insofar as the structure and operational organization of such companies are concerned; that the initial National Labor Relation Board decision in regard to doublebreasted operations in the construction industry was merely an application of precedent of some years previous in other industries; and that construction industry doublebreasted operations are much more a result than a cause of union decline.

Unit costs, legal shocks, and unionization in construction

Abstract: I develop an econometric model to examine three potential causes of the decline of unionization in the construction industry in the 1970s and 1980s: increased cost relative to the open shop, reduced coverage by prevailing wage laws, and expanded double-breasting in response to NLRB decisions. The results show that relative cost was the decisive factor in the 1970s, whereas double-breasting was the most plausible explanation in the 1980s.

Crossing the line: The determinants of picket line crossing during a faculty strike

Abstract: This study builds on the strike-militancy literature by examining the determinants of the union member’s decision to cross a picket line during a 29-day university faculty strike. As hypothesized, voting behavior in authorization and ratification elections significantly predicted crossing behavior, suggesting that strike voting may provide information about the level of support for the strike and, in turn, the level of bargaining power. In addition, satisfaction with the administration, union commitment, attitudes toward unions, co-worker social support, and the perceived cost of striking were significantly related to crossing behavior.

Protective service unions’ political activities and department expenditures

Abstract: This paper examines how police and firefighter unions’ political activities influence departmental expenditures. Unlike prior research, we measure unions’ political activity independently of union bargaining power. Results indicate that a protective service union’s electoral activities positively affect departmental expenditures, and these effects are attributable to union political power rather than multilateral collective bargaining power.

The political influence of unions and corporations on COPE votes in the U.S. senate, 1979–1988

Abstract: The political influence of unions and corporations is examined by analyzing Senate roll-call votes on COPE-identified legislation for the period 1979–1988. Union PAC contributions and union membership both have significant positive effects on three different types of COPE legislation: Narrow Union, General Labor, and Non-Labor. In addition, corporate PAC contributions to senators’ opponents reduce their pro-union voting behavior on Narrow Union and General Labor bills. There is no evidence that the political influence of unions in the U.S. is declining.

Marginal revenue and labor strife in major league baseball

Abstract: An improved model of baseball player performance and revenue generation shows that, overall, major league players are paid more than the marginal revenue they generate from spectators at the ballpark. Broadcast revenue is shown to be a factor in player salaries, although this revenue is not sensitive to individual player output. Under the current bargaining procedure, collective action in baseball is therefore viewed as the only way to entice owners to pay players for the broadcast revenue they generate.

Current prospects for employee representation in the U.S.: Old wine in new bottles?

Abstract: A major issue currently being debated in the U.S. is whether to allow employers to establish works councils, employee committees, or other representational systems not permitted under the current labor laws. I bring economic, political, and historical analysis to bear on this issue and recommend an experimental relaxation of current law proscribing employer assistance to labor organizations. This is likely to improve the quality of employee participation, although it is unlikely to raise the amount of it.

The ideologies of U.S. and Canadian IR scholars: A comparative analysis and construct validation

Abstract: This paper: (1) reports the findings of a 1991 survey of the values and beliefs of U.S. IR scholars and compares these to the findings of a Canadian survey conducted a year earlier and (2) examines the structure, covariates, and construct validity of a scale measuring ideology developed from the Canadian data and incorporated in the U.S. survey. It finds U.S. scholars in general to be slightly more conservative than their Canadian counterparts. However, as in Canada, they evince considerable support for enhanced legal rights and protections for workers, while at the same time supporting the cooperativist schemes associated with the progressive HRM paradigm. This suggests aquid pro quo of sorts: that if workers are to undergo the sacrifices associated with these schemes (e.g., reduced rights under the collective agreement), they should be provided with increased rights under the law. Finally, the measure of ideology developed from the Canadian data is replicated by the U.S. survey; its covariates are also similar; and it conforms to a number of construct validity criteria.

Voice asymmetries in ERISA litigation

Abstract: ERISA’s equitable remedies limit employees’ access to the courts. The law fails to protect workers with short tenure and low wages, for example female workers, because trial costs often exceed damages. In single-employer plans, unions improve access, but in multiemployer plans they do not. The reason is that in single-employer plans unions bargain at arm’s length with plan sponsors while in multiemployer plans they do not. Plaintiffs’ win rates are approximately 50 percent in singleemployer union ERISA cases but are significantly below 50 percent in nonunion and multiemployer cases.