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Labor Unions and Support for Redistribution in an Era of Inequality

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  • David Macdonald

Abstract

Objectives The United States has become increasingly unequal over the past several decades. Despite this, public opinion toward redistribution has remained largely unchanged. This is puzzling, given Americans' professed concern regarding, and knowledge of, rising inequality. I argue that the decline of labor unions, an organization that promotes anti‐inequality attitudes among its members, can help us to understand this. Method I use panel data from the 50 U.S. states from 1978 to 2012 and ordinary least squares regression to examine how state‐level unionization levels condition the relationship between income inequality and support for redistributive spending. Results I find that in contexts where labor unions are stronger, higher levels of income inequality prompt greater support for welfare spending. Conclusion These findings illustrate an additional mechanism through which labor unions can check income inequality and help us to understand why the American public has not turned in favor of redistribution during an era of rising economic inequality.

Suggested Citation

  • David Macdonald, 2019. "Labor Unions and Support for Redistribution in an Era of Inequality," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 100(4), pages 1197-1214, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:socsci:v:100:y:2019:i:4:p:1197-1214
    DOI: 10.1111/ssqu.12627
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    Cited by:

    1. Yan, Alan Nigel, 2023. "The minimal effects of union membership on political attitudes," SocArXiv zabrq, Center for Open Science.
    2. Paul Auerbach & Peter Skott, 2021. "Visions of the future – a socialist departure from gloom?," PSL Quarterly Review, Economia civile, vol. 74(298), pages 155-177.
    3. Sung Min Han & Fangjin Ye, 2022. "Labor union, between group inequality, and individual attitudes toward redistribution," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 103(5), pages 1248-1259, September.
    4. Kris‐Stella Trump, 2023. "Income inequality is unrelated to perceived inequality and support for redistribution," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 104(2), pages 180-188, March.

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