This file is part of IDEAS, which uses RePEc data


[ Papers | Articles | Software | Books | Chapters | Authors | Institutions | JEL Classification | NEP reports | Search | New papers by email | Author registration | Rankings | Volunteers | FAQ | Blog | Help! ]

Determinants of trade union membership in Great Britain during 1991-2003

Author info | Abstract | Publisher info | Download info | Related research | Statistics
Author Info
Georgios Marios Chrysanthou ()

Additional information is available for the following registered author(s):

Abstract

We analyse the determinants of union membership in the UK using data from the BHPS (1991-2003). Employing three alternative methodologies to control for the problem of initial conditions we find that union membership remains persistent even after controlling for the unobserved effect. There is evidence of a considerable correlation between the unobserved individual heterogeneity and the initial membership status. Ignoring this overstates the degree of state dependence of union membership greatly. The extent of state dependence in union membership status is notably higher in the (1991-1996) period estimates and appears to be more pronounced in the case of male employees for the entire period under analysis. The second period estimates reveal that unobserved heterogeneity has a more prominent impact in determining future unionisation probability versus past union membership. Finally, the estimates suggest that an individual´s propensity to unionise is determined by a mixture of industrial and personal characteristics. This is at odds with earlier studies, such as Booth (1986) and Wright (1995), failing to control for unobservable effects and concluding that personal attributes do not have a significant impact on unionisation propensity.

Download Info
To download:

If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the proper application to view it first. Information about this may be contained in the File-Format links below. In case of further problems read the IDEAS help page. Note that these files are not on the IDEAS site. Please be patient as the files may be large.

File URL: http://e-archivo.uc3m.es/dspace/bitstream/10016/2615/1/we082315.pdf
File Format: application/pdf
File Function:
Download Restriction: no

Publisher Info
Paper provided by Universidad Carlos III, Departamento de Economía in its series Economics Working Papers with number we082315.

Download reference. The following formats are available: HTML (with abstract), plain text (with abstract), BibTeX, RIS (EndNote, RefMan, ProCite), ReDIF
Length:
Date of creation: May 2008
Date of revision:
Handle: RePEc:cte:werepe:we082315

Contact details of provider:
Postal: C./ Madrid, 126, 28903 Getafe (Madrid)
Phone: +34-91 6249594
Fax: +34-91 6249329
Email:
Web page: http://www.eco.uc3m.es
More information through EDIRC

For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its listing, contact: ().

Related research
Keywords: Union membership; Initial conditions; Unobserved individual heterogeneity; State dependence; Dynamic random effects probit models;

Other versions of this item:

Find related papers by JEL classification:
C23 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Single Equation Models; Single Variables - - - Models with Panel Data
J51 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor-Management Relations, Trade Unions, and Collective Bargaining - - - Trade Unions: Objectives, Structure, and Effects

This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
  1. Booth, Alison, 1986. "Estimating the Probability of Trade Union Membership: A Study of Men and Women in Britain," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 53(29), pages 41-61, February. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  2. Francis Vella & Marno Verbeek, 1998. "Whose wages do unions raise? A dynamic model of unionism and wage rate determination for young men," Journal of Applied Econometrics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 13(2), pages 163-183. [Downloadable!]
  3. William W. Gould & Jeffrey Pitblado & William Sribney, 2006. "Maximum Likelihood Estimation with Stata," Stata Press books, StataCorp LP, edition 3, number ml3, November-. [Downloadable!]
  4. Stewart, Mark B, 1995. "Union Wage Differentials in an Era of Declining Unionization," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 57(2), pages 143-66, May.
  5. Newey, Whitney K., 1987. "Efficient estimation of limited dependent variable models with endogenous explanatory variables," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 36(3), pages 231-250, November. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  6. Mundlak, Yair, 1978. "On the Pooling of Time Series and Cross Section Data," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 46(1), pages 69-85, January. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  7. Blanchflower, David G & Oswald, Andrew J & Garrett, Mario D, 1990. "Insider Power in Wage Determination," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 57(226), pages 143-70, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  8. Andrews, Martyn J. & Stewart, Mark B. & Swaffield, Joanna K. & Upward, Richard, 1998. "The estimation of union wage differentials and the impact of methodological choices," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 5(4), pages 449-474, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  9. Andrews, M. & Naylor, R., 1993. "Declining UK Union Density in the '80s: What do Panel Data Tell Us?," Memorandum 13/1993, Oslo University, Department of Economics.
  10. E.K. Berndt & B.H. Hall & R.E. Hall, 1974. "Estimation and Inference in Nonlinear Structural Models," NBER Chapters, in: Annals of Economic and Social Measurement, Volume 3, number 4, pages 103-116 National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!]
  11. Cristina Hernandez-Quevedo & Andrew M Jones & Nigel Rice, . "Reporting Bias and Heterogeneity in Self-Assessed Health. Evidence from the British Household Panel Survey," Discussion Papers 04/18, Department of Economics, University of York. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  12. John M. Abowd & Henry S. Farber, 1982. "Job queues and the union status of workers," Industrial and Labor Relations Review, ILR Review, ILR School, Cornell University, vol. 35(3), pages 354-367, April.
  13. David G. Blanchflower & Alex Bryson, 2007. "The Wage Impact of Trade Unions In the UK Public and Private Sectors," IZA Discussion Papers 3055, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
  14. Wiji Arulampalam & Alison L. Booth, 2000. "Union status of young men in Britain: a decade of change," Journal of Applied Econometrics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 15(3), pages 289-310. [Downloadable!]
  15. Jeffrey M. Wooldridge, 2005. "Simple solutions to the initial conditions problem in dynamic, nonlinear panel data models with unobserved heterogeneity," Journal of Applied Econometrics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 20(1), pages 39-54. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  16. Arulampalam, W., 1998. "A Note on Estimated Coefficients in Random Effects Probit Models," The Warwick Economics Research Paper Series (TWERPS) 520, University of Warwick, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
  17. Charles Brown & James L. Medoff, 1989. "The Employer Size-Wage Effect," NBER Working Papers 2870, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  18. Butler, J S & Moffitt, Robert, 1982. "A Computationally Efficient Quadrature Procedure for the One-Factor Multinomial Probit Model," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 50(3), pages 761-64, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  19. Farber, Henry S, 1983. "The Determination of the Union Status of Workers," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 51(5), pages 1417-37, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  20. Naylor, Robin & Raaum, Oddbjorn, 1993. "The Open Shop Union, Wages, and Management Opposition," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 45(4), pages 589-604, October. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  21. Chamberlain, Gary, 1984. "Panel data," Handbook of Econometrics, in: Z. Griliches† & M. D. Intriligator (ed.), Handbook of Econometrics, edition 1, volume 2, chapter 22, pages 1247-1318 Elsevier. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  22. Gregg, P & Naylor, Robin, 1993. "An Inter-establishment Study of Union Recognition and Membership in Great Britain," The Manchester School of Economic & Social Studies, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 61(4), pages 367-85, December.
  23. Stewart, Mark, 2006. "The Inter-related Dynamics of Unemployment and Low-Wage Employment," The Warwick Economics Research Paper Series (TWERPS) 741, University of Warwick, Department of Economics. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  24. Lindbeck, Assar & Snower, Dennis J, 1986. "Wage Setting, Unemployment, and Insider-Outsider Relations," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 76(2), pages 235-39, May.
  25. Arulampalam, Wiji & Booth, Alison L & Taylor, Mark P, 2000. "Unemployment Persistence," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 52(1), pages 24-50, January.
    Other versions:
  26. Swaffield, Joanna K, 2001. " Does Measurement Error Bias Fixed-Effects Estimates of the Union Wage Effect?," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 63(4), pages 437-57, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  27. Gourieroux, Christian & Monfort, Alain & Renault, Eric & Trognon, Alain, 1987. "Generalised residuals," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 34(1-2), pages 5-32. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  28. Disney, Richard & Gosling, Amanda & Machin, Stephen, 1996. "What Has Happened to Union Recognition in Britain?," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 63(249), pages 1-18, February. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  29. John W Budd & Karen Mumford, . "Trade Unions and Family-Friendly Policies in Britian," Discussion Papers 01/14, Department of Economics, University of York. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  30. Vella, Francis & Verbeek, Marno, 1999. "Two-step estimation of panel data models with censored endogenous variables and selection bias," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 90(2), pages 239-263, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
Full references

Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Rupayan Pal, 2008. "Estimating the Probability of Trade Union Membership in India: Impact of Communist Parties, Personal Attributes and Industrial Characteristics," Working Papers id:1669, esocialsciences.com. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
Statistics
Access and download statistics

Did you know? You too can volunteer with RePEc.

This page was last updated on 2009-11-26.

This information is provided to you by IDEAS at the Department of Economics, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, University of Connecticut using RePEc data on a server sponsored by the Society for Economic Dynamics.