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Trade unions in the south and co-operation between unions in the South and in the North: A survey of the economics literature

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  • Mari Kangasniemi
  • Jukka Pirttilä

Abstract

This paper offers a survey of the recent economic literature on the effects of unions in developing countries, with a particular emphasis on the impact of unionisation on labour standards. The paper also discusses the studies – or, more aptly, the lack thereof – of the impact of development aid that is channelled via unions. The observations point towards important areas for rigorous further empirical research.

Suggested Citation

  • Mari Kangasniemi & Jukka Pirttilä, 2013. "Trade unions in the south and co-operation between unions in the South and in the North: A survey of the economics literature," Working Papers 285, Työn ja talouden tutkimus LABORE, The Labour Institute for Economic Research LABORE.
  • Handle: RePEc:pst:wpaper:285
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Kangasniemi Mari & Pirttilä Jukka, 2016. "Evaluation of development co-operation to strengthen trade unions in Zambia – a methodological approach and results from a baseline study," Working Papers 1607, Tampere University, Faculty of Management and Business, Economics.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    rade unions; development; civil society; labour standards; development aid;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J51 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor-Management Relations, Trade Unions, and Collective Bargaining - - - Trade Unions: Objectives, Structure, and Effects
    • O15 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Economic Development: Human Resources; Human Development; Income Distribution; Migration
    • O22 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Development Planning and Policy - - - Project Analysis

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