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The determinants of trade union membership in Britain: A survey of the literature

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Author Info
Bob Mason
Peter Bain
Abstract

Trade union density, defined as the number of union members divided by the total number of workers, fell in Britain from 55% in 1979 to about 41% in 1989. (By comparison, the corresponding U.S. figures for those years are 23% and 16%.) Even before the decline began, British scholars and practitioners began focusing increasing attention on the determinants of union growth and decline. This literature review traces debate on the subject in Britain to the work of George Bain and his colleagues starting in the mid-1970s, and examines several key contributions of more recent years. The authors differentiate "structuralist" studies, which emphasize environmental determinants of union membership (such as the business cycle), from "interventionist" studies, which place more emphasis on the influence of unions themselves (through the involvement of full-time officials in recruiting, for example). (Abstract courtesy JSTOR.)

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Publisher Info
Article provided by ILR Review, ILR School, Cornell University in its journal ILR Review.

Volume (Year): 46 (1993)
Issue (Month): 2 (January)
Pages: 332-351
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Handle: RePEc:ilr:articl:v:46:y:1993:i:2:p:332-351

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  1. John V. Duca & David D. VanHoose, 1998. "The rise of goods-market competition and the fall of nominal wage contracting: endogenous wage contracting in a multisector economy," Working Papers 98-05, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  2. David G. Blanchflower, 2006. "A Cross-Country Study of Union Membership," IZA Discussion Papers 2016, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
  3. Dr Sukhan Jackson & Helen Higgs & Glenda Cooper, 2002. "Determinants Of Unionisation For Part-Time Women Employees In Australian Banks," Discussion Papers Series 317, School of Economics, University of Queensland, Australia. [Downloadable!]
  4. Robin Naylor, 1995. "Unions in Decline?," Nordic Journal of Political Economy, Nordic Journal of Political Economy, vol. 22, pages 127-142. [Downloadable!]
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