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Trade Union Membership and Works Councils in West Germany

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Author Info
Laszlo Goerke () (University of Tuebingen, CESifo and IZA)
Markus Pannenberg () (University of Applied Sciences Bielefeld, DIW Berlin and IZA)

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Abstract

The fraction of works councillors belonging to a trade union in Germany is much higher than union density among employees. If works councils represent the face of unions, union membership of employees should be related positively to the existence of works councils and their proximity to unions. Using data from the German Socio-Economic-Panel SOEP we find that (a) works councillors exhibit a higher probability of being a union member, (b) the mere existence of a works council within an establishment has no impact on union membership and (c) a 10 % decrease in the average share of unionised works councillors coincides with a 10 % fall in the probability of being a union member. Hence, the decline in the unionisation of works councillors and the fall in union density in West Germany are closely linked.

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Publisher Info
Paper provided by Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA) in its series IZA Discussion Papers with number 2635.

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Length: 30 pages
Date of creation: Feb 2007
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Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp2635

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Related research
Keywords: panel data; trade union membership; works councils;

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Find related papers by JEL classification:
J51 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor-Management Relations, Trade Unions, and Collective Bargaining - - - Trade Unions: Objectives, Structure, and Effects
J53 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor-Management Relations, Trade Unions, and Collective Bargaining - - - Labor-Management Relations; Industrial Jurisprudence

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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. Goerke, Laszlo & Pannenberg, Markus, 2003. "Norm-Based Trade Union Membership: Evidence for Germany," IZA Discussion Papers 962, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  2. Martin Beck & Bernd Fitzenberger, 2004. "Changes in Union Membership Over Time: A Panel Analysis for West Germany," LABOUR, CEIS, Fondazione Giacomo Brodolini and Blackwell Publishing Ltd, vol. 18(3), pages 329-362, 09. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  3. Jelle Visser, 2002. "Why Fewer Workers Join Unions in Europe: A Social Custom Explanation of Membership Trends," British Journal of Industrial Relations, Blackwell Publishers Ltd/London School of Economics, vol. 40(3), pages 403-430, 09. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. Naylor, Robin & Cripps, Martin, 1993. "An economic theory of the open shop trade union," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 37(8), pages 1599-1620, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  5. William H. Greene, 1998. "Gender Economics Courses in Liberal Arts Colleges: Further Results," Journal of Economic Education, Helen Dwight Reid Foundation, vol. 29(4), pages 291-300. [Downloadable!]
  6. Goerke, Laszlo, 1997. "An Open Shop, Wage Bargaining, and Taxation--A Note," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 49(4), pages 651-57, October. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  7. Fitzenberger, Bernd & Kohn, Karsten & Wang, Qingwei, 2006. "The Erosion of Union Membership in Germany: Determinants, Densities, Decompositions," ZEW Discussion Papers 06-66, ZEW - Zentrum für Europäische Wirtschaftsforschung / Center for European Economic Research. [Downloadable!]
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  8. Daniele Checchi & Claudio Lucifora, 2002. "Unions and labour market institutions in Europe," Economic Policy, CEPR, CES, MSH, vol. 17(35), pages 361-408, October. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  9. Petri Böckerman & Roope Uusitalo, 2006. "Erosion of the Ghent System and Union Membership Decline: Lessons from Finland," British Journal of Industrial Relations, Blackwell Publishers Ltd/London School of Economics, vol. 44(2), pages 283-303, 06. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  10. Corneo, Giacomo G., 1997. "The theory of the open shop trade union reconsidered," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 4(1), pages 71-84, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  11. Booth, Alison L & Chatterji, Monojit, 1993. "Reputation, Membership and Wages in Open Shop Trade Union," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 45(1), pages 23-41, January. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  12. Booth, Alison L & Chatterji, Monojit, 1995. "Union Membership and Wage Bargaining When Membership is Not Compulsory," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 105(429), pages 345-60, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  13. 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)
  14. Giacomo Corneo, 1993. "Semi-unionized bargaining with endogenous membership and management opposition," Journal of Economics, Springer, vol. 57(2), pages 169-188, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  15. Akerlof, George A, 1980. "A Theory of Social Custom, of Which Unemployment May be One Consequence," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 94(4), pages 749-75, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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  16. Moreton, David, 1999. "A Model of Labour Productivity and Union Density in British Private Sector Unionised Establishments," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 51(2), pages 322-44, April.
  17. Jones, Stephen R G & McKenna, C J, 1994. "A Dynamic Model of Union Membership and Employment," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 61(242), pages 179-89, May. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  18. Claus Schnabel & Joachim Wagner, 2005. "Who Are the Workers Who Never Joined a Union? Empirical Evidence from Germany," IZA Discussion Papers 1658, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
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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. Laszlo Goerke & Markus Pannenberg, 2008. "Risk Aversion and Trade Union Membership," SOEPpapers 88, DIW Berlin, The German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP). [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  2. Schnabel, Claus & Wagner, Joachim, 2008. "The Aging of the Unions in West Germany, 1980–2006," IZA Discussion Papers 3661, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA). [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
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