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Teacher Unions and the Productivity of Public Schools

Author

Listed:
  • Randall W. Eberts
  • Joe A. Stone

Abstract

Do teacher unions affect the productivity of public schools? The authors examine this question using individual student data from the Sustaining Effects Survey sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education. Holding resources constant and using achievement gains on standardized tests as the measure of output, they find that union districts are seven percent more productive for average students. For the minority of students who are significantly above or below average, however, nonunion districts are more productive by about the same margin, apparently because teacher unions reduce the use of specialized instructional techniques. This result is consistent with the view that unions tend to standardize the workplace. Across all students, the average union productivity advantage is three percent.

Suggested Citation

  • Randall W. Eberts & Joe A. Stone, 1987. "Teacher Unions and the Productivity of Public Schools," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 40(3), pages 354-363, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:ilrrev:v:40:y:1987:i:3:p:354-363
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    Cited by:

    1. Barrow, Lisa & Rouse, Cecilia Elena, 2004. "Using market valuation to assess public school spending," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 88(9-10), pages 1747-1769, August.
    2. MacLeod, W. Bentley, 2011. "Great Expectations: Law, Employment Contracts, and Labor Market Performance," Handbook of Labor Economics, in: O. Ashenfelter & D. Card (ed.), Handbook of Labor Economics, edition 1, volume 4, chapter 18, pages 1591-1696, Elsevier.
    3. repec:eee:labchp:v:3:y:1999:i:pc:p:3573-3630 is not listed on IDEAS
    4. Marianno, Bradley D. & Strunk, Katharine O., 2018. "The bad end of the bargain?: Revisiting the relationship between collective bargaining agreements and student achievement," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 93-106.
    5. Cassandra M.D. Hart & Aaron J. Sojourner, 2015. "Unionization and Productivity: Evidence from Charter Schools," Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 54(3), pages 422-448, July.
    6. Rose, Heather & Sonstelie, Jon, 2010. "School board politics, school district size, and the bargaining power of teachers' unions," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 67(3), pages 438-450, May.
    7. Trevor Collier & Daniel Millimet, 2009. "Institutional arrangements in educational systems and student achievement: a cross-national analysis," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 37(2), pages 329-381, October.
    8. Cruz, Tassia, 2018. "Teacher hiring decisions: How do governments react to an exogenous redistribution of education funds?," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 67(C), pages 58-81.
    9. Gregory, Robert G. & Borland, Jeff, 1999. "Recent developments in public sector labor markets," Handbook of Labor Economics, in: O. Ashenfelter & D. Card (ed.), Handbook of Labor Economics, edition 1, volume 3, chapter 53, pages 3573-3630, Elsevier.
    10. Jairo NUNEZ MENDEZ & Roberto STEINER & Ximena CADENA & Renata PARDO, 2002. "¿Cuáles colegios ofrecen mejor educación en Colombia?," Archivos de Economía 3795, Departamento Nacional de Planeación.
    11. Jean-Michel Plassard & Nhu Tran Thi Thanh, 2009. "Liberté de choix des élèves et concurrence des établissements : un survey de l'analyse du pilotage des systèmes éducatifs par les quasi-marchés," Revue d'économie industrielle, De Boeck Université, vol. 0(2), pages 99-130.
    12. Lott, Johnathan & Kenny, Lawrence W., 2013. "State teacher union strength and student achievement," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 35(C), pages 93-103.
    13. Michael Baker, 2013. "Industrial actions in schools: strikes and student achievement," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 46(3), pages 1014-1036, August.
    14. Shawna Grosskopf & Kathy J. Hayes & Lori L. Taylor & William Weber, 1995. "On competition and school efficiency," Working Papers 9506, Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.
    15. Bradley D. Marianno & Paul Bruno & Kathrine O. Strunk, 2021. "The Effect of Teachers’ Union Contracts on School District Efficiency: Longitudinal Evidence From California," SAGE Open, , vol. 11(1), pages 21582440209, February.
    16. Fatoş Silman & Ahmet Güneyli & Osman Vaiz & Nedime Karasel-Ayda, 2021. "Comparative Analysis of North and South Cyprus’ Teachers’ Perceptions of Teachers’ Unions," SAGE Open, , vol. 11(1), pages 21582440209, January.
    17. Lisa Barrow & Cecilia Elena Rouse, 2000. "Using market valuation to assess the importance and efficiency of public school spending," Working Paper Series WP-00-4, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago.
    18. D. N. Figlio & J. A. Stone, "undated". "School Choice and Student Performance: Are Private Schools Really Better?," Institute for Research on Poverty Discussion Papers 1141-97, University of Wisconsin Institute for Research on Poverty.
    19. Katharine O. Strunk & Sean F. Reardon, 2010. "Measuring the Strength of Teachers' Unions," Journal of Educational and Behavioral Statistics, , vol. 35(6), pages 629-670, December.
    20. Joshua C. Hall & Donald J. Lacombe & Joylynn Pruitt, 2017. "Collective bargaining and school district test scores: evidence from Ohio bargaining agreements," Applied Economics Letters, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 24(1), pages 35-38, January.
    21. Michèle Belot & Dinand Webbink, 2010. "Do Teacher Strikes Harm Educational Attainment of Students?," LABOUR, CEIS, vol. 24(4), pages 391-406, December.
    22. Cowen, Joshua M. & Strunk, Katharine O., 2015. "The impact of teachers’ unions on educational outcomes: What we know and what we need to learn," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 208-223.
    23. Eunice S. Han, 2020. "The Myth of Unions’ Overprotection of Bad Teachers: Evidence from the District–Teacher Matched Data on Teacher Turnover," Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 59(2), pages 316-352, April.
    24. Duplantis, Malcolm M. & Chandler, Timothy D. & Geske, Terry G., 1995. "The growth and impact of teachers' unions in states without collective bargaining legislation," Economics of Education Review, Elsevier, vol. 14(2), pages 167-178, June.

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