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First Contract Arbitration: Effects on Bargaining and Work Stoppages

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  • Susan J. T. Johnson

Abstract

Newly certified unions often experience difficulty negotiating a first agreement. To remedy this, the Employee Free Choice Act proposes that the National Labor Relations Act provide for first contract arbitration (FCA). Using a panel of Canadian jurisdictions that have introduced FCA legislation at different times over several decades, the author addresses three questions: (1) How does this legislation affect the incidence of first agreement work stoppages? (2) Does FCA encourage or discourage collective bargaining in the negotiation of first agreements? (3) Does FCA influence the duration of first agreement work stoppages? The author finds that the presence of FCA legislation reduces first agreement work stoppage incidence by at least 50 percent, yet unions make use of FCA infrequently and first contracts are rarely imposed by third parties. Together these results suggest that FCA encourages collective bargaining by creating an incentive for the parties to bargain in good faith and negotiate an agreement. Finally, FCA legislation has no statistically significant impact on the duration of first agreement work stoppages.

Suggested Citation

  • Susan J. T. Johnson, 2010. "First Contract Arbitration: Effects on Bargaining and Work Stoppages," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 63(4), pages 585-605, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:ilrrev:v:63:y:2010:i:4:p:585-605
    DOI: 10.1177/001979391006300402
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    4. Card, David & Freeman, Richard B. (ed.), 1993. "Small Differences That Matter," National Bureau of Economic Research Books, University of Chicago Press, number 9780226092836, Febrero.
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    Cited by:

    1. Scott Legree, Tammy Schirle, Mikal Skuterud, 2014. "The Effect of Labour Relations Laws on Union Density Rates: Evidence from Canadian Provinces," LCERPA Working Papers 0078, Laurier Centre for Economic Research and Policy Analysis, revised 08 Sep 2014.
    2. Bradley R. Weinberg, 2021. "‘til Dissolution Do Us Part: (Re)Assessing the First Contract and Trial Marriage Goals of First Contract Arbitration in Ontario," Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 60(1), pages 119-144, January.
    3. Chris Riddell, 2013. "Labor Law and Reaching a First Collective Agreement: Evidence From a Quasi-Experimental Set of Reforms in Ontario," Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 52(3), pages 702-736, July.
    4. Scott Legree & Tammy Schirle & Mikal Skuterud, 2017. "The Effect of Labor Relations Laws on Unionization Rates within the Labor Force: Evidence from the Canadian Provinces," Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 56(4), pages 605-639, October.

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