Union Amalgamations and the Decline in Union Density

1999 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
pp. 35-52 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Wooden
Keyword(s):  
Panel Data ◽  
Regression Model ◽  
Trade Union ◽  
Union Membership ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Union Density ◽  
Union Movement ◽  
Marked Decline

Confronted by a marked decline in trade union density, the union movement in Australia bas responded by promoting the restructuring and amolgamation of trade unions. As a result, the number of active trade unions in Australia has fallen markedly since 1990. Despite tbis, the decline in trade union density accelerated during the 1990s, leading some analysts to suggest that the union amalgamation process may actually have been counterproductive in terms of overall trade union membership. This article tests this hypothesis using panel data collected as part of the Australian Workplace Industrial Relations Survey. A regression model of changes in union density in the period 1989/90 to 1995 is developed and estimated. The results indicate that while declining union numbers have been associated with the decline in union density, none of the blame for the fall can be traced to the amalgamation process.

Een halve eeuw vakbondslidmaatschap : Een verkennende longitudinale studie naar enkele cyclische determinanten voor de ledenontwikkeling van de Belgische vakbonden, 1946-1995

Res Publica ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 46 (1) ◽  
pp. 6-32
Author(s):  
Kurt Vandaele
Keyword(s):  
Trade Union ◽  
Union Membership ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Econometric Model ◽  
Positive Impact ◽  
Union Density ◽  
Free Riding ◽  
Structural Variable ◽  
Explanatory Variables ◽  
The Impact

This article explains the ebb and flow in Belgian trade union membership from 1946 to 1995 by replicating the econometric model by Bain and Elsheikhn in which changes in macro-economic variables are highly significant. Since the automatic indexation of wages and the extension of collective labour agreements invite free riding, the relevance of the change in inflation and real wage is quite striking. However, the free riding-effect is slowed down by the institutionalised presence of the trade unions on the work floor. The Ghent system explains the positive impact of the unemployment rate . The model is furthermore improved by the trade union density as a structural variable. The linear form reflects the enforcement effect, while the quadratic form mirrors the saturation effect on the trade union membership. Mainly due to the 'Allgemeinkoalitionsfähighkeit' of the Belgian government system, the impact of left parties on union growth and decline is not significant in a quantitative framework. With only four explanatory variables the model clarifies more than 75% of the fluctuations in Belgian trade union membership.

Purging the Trade Unions

2020 ◽  
pp. 343-373
Author(s):  
Ewing Mahoney
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Trade Union ◽  
Union Membership ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Legal Regulation ◽  
Service Trade ◽  
Public Sector Employment ◽  
Legal Foundations ◽  
Legal Position

This chapter looks at government attempts to ban trade unions, considering the steps that were taken in lieu of an outright ban on trade union membership. Consistently with other measures taken at the time under the cover of security, government intervention to deal with the alleged menace of Communist infiltration of the civil service trade unions did not take the form of legislation. The legal position reflected both the lack of legal regulation of industrial relations generally and the lack of legal regulation of public-sector employment in particular. In practice, governments rarely needed to reveal or justify the legal foundations for their actions. The benefit for government is that although security policies might well be announced and made public, there would be little accountability thereafter if operated unobtrusively.

Regional Differentiation in Trade Union Density

1993 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 255-272 ◽  
Author(s):  
L Van der Laan
Keyword(s):  
Trade Union ◽  
Union Membership ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Historical Context ◽  
Union Density ◽  
Regional Differentiation ◽  
Regional Economic ◽  
Labour Unions ◽  
Locational Analysis ◽  
Regional Economic Analysis

In general, regional economic analysis of trade unions is particularly directed at the effects of labour unions, whereas the conditions and causal aspects which influence the presence of labour unions in regions are studied far less. In this paper an attempt is made to fill part of this gap in knowledge by means of an analysis of the causes of the regional differentiation in labour union membership in the Netherlands. A theoretical survey into the causes of variation in regional membership is reported on. Subsequently, the effects of the potential causes of this regional differentiation are analysed empirically. First, it was found that several potentially important aspects do not explain the regional variation in membership. Second, those aspects that were relevant can be reduced to two common factors. Third, it can be concluded that the rather low level of explanation of the regional differentiation suggests that present economic locational analysis should be supplemented by an approach in which the economic historical context is taken into account too. Regional differentiation in trade union membership can only fully be understood from a regional economic historical approach.

scholarly journals Norm-Based Trade Union Membership: Evidence for Germany

2004 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 481-504 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laszlo Goerke ◽  
Markus Pannenberg
Keyword(s):  
Panel Data ◽  
Labour Market ◽  
Trade Union ◽  
Union Membership ◽  
Union Density ◽  
Free Rider ◽  
Free Rider Problem ◽  
Social Custom ◽  
The Impact

Abstract In the absence of closed shops and discriminatory wage policies, union membership can be explained by the existence of social norms.We describe a model, incorporating institutional features of the German labour market, which explicitly allows for social custom effects in the determination of union membership. Using panel data for Germany, we find evidence for according effects which restrict freeriding. The impact of social norms tends to increase with net union density. Hence, observed reductions in the demand for union membership can weaken the impact of a norm and accentuate the free-rider problem.

scholarly journals How do union membership, union density and institutionalization affect perceptions of conflict between management and workers?

2020 ◽  
pp. 095968012096354
Author(s):  
Josef Ringqvist
Keyword(s):  
Trade Union ◽  
Union Membership ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Union Density ◽  
Social Survey ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Country Level ◽  
Multi Level ◽  
The Individual ◽  
International Social

This article contributes to debates about trade unions and conflict by studying how individuals’ perceptions of conflicts between management and workers relate to trade union membership, country-level trade union density and institutionalization (collective bargaining coverage, centralization and policy concertation). Hierarchical multi-level models are fitted to data from the International Social Survey Programme from 2009. The results show that union members tend to be more likely than non-members to perceive management–worker conflicts and that this appears not to vary substantially between countries. However, regardless of union membership, individuals in countries with higher trade union density and with policy concertation tend to be significantly less likely to perceive conflicts. These findings highlight the risk of atomic fallacies in research limited to the individual-level effects of union membership. Contrary to an argument often raised by pluralists, neither bargaining coverage nor centralization has significant effects. Overall, the results question depictions of trade unions as divisive organizations.

The Political Struggles of Nigerian Labor

2018 ◽  
pp. 386-405
Author(s):  
Jon Kraus
Keyword(s):  
Trade Union ◽  
Union Membership ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
State Policies ◽  
The State ◽  
The Political ◽  
Union Movement ◽  
Political Struggles ◽  
Almost Continuous ◽  
Labor Regimes

The chapter examines the political struggles of Nigerian trade unions during the diverse labor regimes since independence. Labor regimes are the complex of laws, institutions, and practices through which the relations between the state, labor, and capital are regulated and contested. Major changes in political regimes and in the economy led to almost continuous trade union challenges to government and company practices from the late 1970s to the present, expressed in numerous general strikes and strike threats against governments. Attempts by a military regime to incorporate/subordinate the union movement within the state’s embrace in 1978 created a new labor regime but had the contradictory effect of strengthening union membership and capabilities. The Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and member unions have been banned on two occasions, but union organization, generations of leadership, and combative traditions have enabled the union movement to persist in resisting state policies and employer obstructions. Union resistance often elicited widespread popular support. Democrat governments since 1999 have eliminated statist laws which supported unions, changing the labor regime to favor government and capital, part of overall market liberalization that works to weaken unions. Still, unions retain significant leverage.

scholarly journals Evidence of Trade Union Membership and Expectations at a Scottish University

2020 ◽  
pp. 77-86
Author(s):  
Dr. Theresa Marie Majeed
Keyword(s):  
Trade Union ◽  
Union Membership ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Union Member ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Qualitative Approach ◽  
Job Dissatisfaction ◽  
Diverse Group ◽  
Quantitative Analyses

This work presents insights on trade union member employees’ expectations of union membership and its association with their perceptions of job dissatisfaction at a Scottish university. For over five decades, employees in trade unions have reported higher levels of dissatisfaction with their jobs than non-unionized employees in studies from different countries. The question of trade union membership and job dissatisfaction remains open to inquiry because previous studies used quantitative analyses, yet industrial relations scholars still do not possess a salient explanation for why the phenomenon exists. In contrast to those studies, this work used a qualitative approach of 23 interviews with trade union member employees. The results of the present work contribute to an area in need of data, as the expectations of trade union membership presented here were gathered from a diverse group of trade union member employees to which contemporary trade unions are focusing their recruitment efforts.

How can trade unions in Europe connect with young workers?

2018 ◽  
pp. 660-688 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kurt Vandaele
Keyword(s):  
Trade Union ◽  
Union Membership ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Union Density ◽  
Attitudes And Beliefs ◽  
Young Workers ◽  
Huge Amount ◽  
Social Custom ◽  
Generational Shift ◽  
Low Rate

Trade union density has almost universally declined across Europe in recent decades, although substantial cross-country variation still exists. This chapter argues that the currently low rate of youth unionization is not the outcome of a generational shift in attitudes and beliefs regarding the value of trade unions. This phenomenon is a result rather of the decline of union membership as a social custom and the diminishing exposure to unionism in the workplace. This chapter argues that unions have a huge amount of agency as they play a particularly important role in the effort to develop effective, tailor-made strategies for organizing young workers.

scholarly journals DENSITI, CAKUPAN DAN PENGIKTIRAFAN KESATUAN SEKERJA: ANALISIS KAJIAN LEPAS

2018 ◽  
pp. 183-198
Author(s):  
MUZDALIFAH JANGLI ◽  
FAZLI ABD. HAMID
Keyword(s):  
Literature Review ◽  
Trade Union ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Industrial Relations ◽  
Secondary Analysis ◽  
Union Density ◽  
Analysis Method ◽  
Union Coverage

Abstrak Kajian literatur menunjukkan pelbagai kajian yang dibuat oleh sarjana-sarjana Hubungan Industri tentang pergerakan kesatuan sekerja di seluruh dunia. Pergerakan kesatuan sekerja pastinya mencorakkan sistem hubungan industri. Hal ini demikian kerana kesatuan sekerja merupakan salah satu faktor yang mempunyai matlamat memelihara dan melindungi kebajikan dan kepentingan hak asasi golongan pekerja. Kajian ini menggunakan kaedah analisis sekunder dengan menekankan tiga elemen yang dianggap penting untuk menentukan kekuatan kesatuan sekerja, iaitu densiti kesatuan, cakupan kesatuan dan pengiktirafan kesatuan sekerja. Objektif artikel ini adalah untuk mengenal pasti elemen utama di antara ketiga-ketiga elemen kekuatan kesatuan sekerja yang dijalankan oleh pengkaji-pengkaji lepas. Artikel ini mendapati setiap ketiga-tiga elemen ini dikelaskan secara berasingan, sedangkan rangkuman ketiga-tiga ini perlu dibuat kerana kajian tentang kekuatan kesatuan sekerja boleh diterokai dengan lebih jelas dengan menggunakan faktor densiti kesatuan, cakupan dan pengiktirafan kesatuan. Kedua, kajian terkini khasnya yang menekankan tentang cakupan kesatuan masih terhad. Kajian yang menekankan tentang cakupan kesatuan perlu ditekankan kerana mampu mencorakkan solidariti kesatuan sekerja semasa. Kata kunci: Elemen kekuatan kesatuan sekerja, densiti kesatuan, cakupan kesatuan, pengiktirafan kesatuan. Abstract The literature review shows the various studies made by Industrial Relations scholars on the movement of trade unions worldwide. The trade union’s movement definitely shapes the industrial relations system. This is because trade union is one of the factors that have the goal of preserving and protecting the welfare and importance of the workers’ rights. This research uses the secondary analysis method that emphasizes on the three elements that considered vital in determining the strength of trade union, namely unity density, union coverage and union recognition. The objective of this article is to identify the key element between the three elements of union strength that are often applied based on previous studies. This article finds that each of these three elements is classified separately,whereas the summary of these three need to be made as studies on the strength of trade unions can be explored more clearly by using the factors of union density, coverage and union recognition. Secondly, the latest research especially that emphasizes on the union’s coverage is still limited. A study that emphasizes on the coverage of the union should be emphasized as it depicts the solidarity of current trade unions. Keywords: Elements of union strength, union density, union coverage, union recognition.

scholarly journals Stéttarfélagsaðild á Íslandi

2019 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 67-90
Author(s):  
Gylfi Dalmann Aðalsteinsson ◽  
Þórhallur Örn Guðlaugsson
Keyword(s):  
Labour Market ◽  
Trade Union ◽  
Union Membership ◽  
Trade Unions ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Union Density ◽  
Employment Contracts ◽  
Employment Rates ◽  
Fierce Competition ◽  
Second World

Few studies have been conducted on trade union density in Iceland, some has been written about trade unions in Iceland. There has been a lot of debate in Europe over the last 20 years of declining trade union density. There are various reasons for this decline, such as general economic prosperity since the end of the Second World War, EU directives and regulations on increased rights and protection of workers, more focus on work life balance, increased economic growth, higher employment rates, structural change in the labour market and new management practices that encourage employees to be outside of trade unions. Furthermore, as a possible explanation, internationalization and fierce competition of companies in global markets has also been pointed out, greater emphasis on flexibility in employment contracts, job outsourcing and the fact that it is more difficult to get well-educated professionals to be union members. The development of trade union density in Iceland has been different. For the last 20 years, trade union density in Iceland has been very high and remained fairly stable. This paper deals with trade union density in Iceland from 1994 to 2016. Few proposition, according to the authors’ assessment, are put forward that can shed light on high union density in Iceland. They are: 1) closed shop agreements, 2) check-off system, legal obligation for employers to deducts a portion of an employee’s wages to pay union dues, 3) large public sector, 4) strategic work of trade unions to make union membership attracting with various services and benefits for members, 5) trade unions has emphasized on reaching to young people in the labour market, 6) trade union membership granted union members access to pension fund, 7) the “Ghent system” which linked unemployment benefits to union membership.

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