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Labour market institutions and the personal distribution of income in the OECD

Author

Listed:
  • Daniele Checchi

    (Department of Economics - UNIMI - Università degli Studi di Milano = University of Milan)

  • Cecilia Garcìa-Peñalosa

    (GREQAM - Groupement de Recherche en Économie Quantitative d'Aix-Marseille - EHESS - École des hautes études en sciences sociales - AMU - Aix Marseille Université - ECM - École Centrale de Marseille - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique)

Abstract

A large literature has studied the impact of labour market institutions on wage inequality, but their effect on income inequality has received little attention. In this paper we argue that personal income inequality is a function of the wage differential, the labour share, and the unemployment rate. Labour market institutions then affect income inequality through these three channels and their overall effect is theoretically ambiguous. We use a panel of OECD countries for the period 1960-2000 to examine these effects. We find that greater unionization and a higher degree of wage bargaining coordination have opposite effects on inequality, implying conflicting effects of greater union presence on the distribution of income.

Suggested Citation

  • Daniele Checchi & Cecilia Garcìa-Peñalosa, 2008. "Labour market institutions and the personal distribution of income in the OECD," Working Papers halshs-00341005, HAL.
    • Handle: RePEc:hal:wpaper:halshs-00341005
    Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://shs.hal.science/halshs-00341005
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    income inequality; labour share; trade unions;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D31 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - Personal Income and Wealth Distribution
    • D33 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - Factor Income Distribution

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