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International Trade and Collective Bargaining Outcomes: Evidence from German Employer-Employee Data

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  • Gabriel Felbermayr
  • Andreas Hauptmann
  • Hans-Jörg Schmerer
  • Gabriel J. Felbermayr

Abstract

In theoretical trade models with variable markups and collective wage bargaining, export exposure may reduce the exporter wage premium. We test this prediction using linked German employer-employee data from 1996 to 2007. To separate the rent-sharing mechanism from assortative matching, we exploit individual worker information to construct profitability measures that are free of skill composition. We find that rentsharing is less pronounced in more export intensive firms or in more open industries. The exporter wage premium is highest for low productivity firms. In line with theory, these findings are unique to the subsample of plants covered by collective bargaining.

Suggested Citation

  • Gabriel Felbermayr & Andreas Hauptmann & Hans-Jörg Schmerer & Gabriel J. Felbermayr, 2012. "International Trade and Collective Bargaining Outcomes: Evidence from German Employer-Employee Data," ifo Working Paper Series 130, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich.
  • Handle: RePEc:ces:ifowps:_130
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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • E24 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution; Aggregate Human Capital; Aggregate Labor Productivity
    • F16 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Trade and Labor Market Interactions
    • J30 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - General
    • J51 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor-Management Relations, Trade Unions, and Collective Bargaining - - - Trade Unions: Objectives, Structure, and Effects

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