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Unemployment and the Demand for Unions

Author

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  • David G. Blanchflower
  • Robert Crouchley
  • Saul Estrin
  • Andrew Oswald

Abstract

Why do people join open-shop unions when they would receive union wage rates even if they were not members? Why are unionization rates so low in the south-east of England? To address these questions, which we treat as interrelated, the paper considers the idea that unions offer insurance against victimization and arbitrary dismissal. Consistent with our theoretical approach, we find that union density is greatest, ceteris paribus, within establishments in areas of high unemployment.

Suggested Citation

  • David G. Blanchflower & Robert Crouchley & Saul Estrin & Andrew Oswald, 1990. "Unemployment and the Demand for Unions," NBER Working Papers 3251, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:3251
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Neumann, George R & Rissman, Ellen R, 1984. "Where Have All the Union Members Gone?," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 2(2), pages 175-192, April.
    2. Blanchflower, D. & Oswald, A. & Garrett, M., 1988. "Insider Power In Wage Determination," Papers 319, London School of Economics - Centre for Labour Economics.
    3. Daniel L. McFadden, 1976. "Quantal Choice Analysis: A Survey," NBER Chapters, in: Annals of Economic and Social Measurement, Volume 5, number 4, pages 363-390, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    4. Farber, Henry S & Saks, Daniel H, 1980. "Why Workers Want Unions: The Role of Relative Wages and Job Characteristics," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 88(2), pages 349-369, April.
    5. 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 143-170, May.
    6. Rees, Albert, 1989. "The Economics of Trade Unions," University of Chicago Press Economics Books, University of Chicago Press, edition 1, number 9780226707105, September.
    7. Oswald, Andrew J, 1982. "The Microeconomic Theory of the Trade Union," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 92(367), pages 576-595, September.
    8. Alison L. Booth, 1985. "The Free Rider Problem and a Social Custom Model of Trade Union Membership," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 100(1), pages 253-261.
    9. 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.
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    Cited by:

    1. N Millward, 1993. "Uses of the Workplace Industrial Relations Surveys by British Labour Economists," CEP Discussion Papers dp0145, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE.
    2. Uwe Jirjahn, 2021. "Foreign ownership and intra-firm union density in Germany," Economic and Industrial Democracy, Department of Economic History, Uppsala University, Sweden, vol. 42(4), pages 1052-1079, November.
    3. Bedaso, Fenet Jima & Jirjahn, Uwe & Goerke, Laszlo, 2022. "Immigrants and Trade Union Membership: Does Integration into Society and Workplace Play a Moderating Role?," GLO Discussion Paper Series 1169, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    4. Finseraas, Henning & Roed, Marianne & Schone, Pal, 2018. "Labour Immigration and Union Strength," IZA Discussion Papers 11723, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    5. Millward, N., 1993. "Uses of the workplace industrial relations surveys by British labour economists," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 20964, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    6. Daniele Checchi, 2000. "Time series evidence on union densities in European countries," Departmental Working Papers 2000-10, Department of Economics, Management and Quantitative Methods at Università degli Studi di Milano.
    7. Richard Murphy, 2017. "Call my Rep! How Unions Overcame the Free-Rider Problem," CESifo Working Paper Series 6362, CESifo.
    8. Daniele Checchi & Claudio Lucifora, 2002. "Unions and labour market institutions in Europe," Departmental Working Papers 2002-16, Department of Economics, Management and Quantitative Methods at Università degli Studi di Milano.
    9. Henning Finseraas & Marianne Røed & Pål Schøne, 2020. "Labour immigration and union strength," European Union Politics, , vol. 21(1), pages 3-23, March.
    10. Martyn Andrews & Robin Naylor, 1994. "Declining Union Density in the 1980s: What Do Panel Data Tell Us?," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 32(3), pages 413-432, September.

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