Monopoly, efficient contract, and median voter models of union wage determination: A critical comparison

1990 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 401-423 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bruce E. Kaufman ◽  
Jorge Martinez-Vazquez
Keyword(s):  
Median Voter ◽  
Union Wage ◽  
Wage Determination ◽  
Critical Comparison ◽  
Efficient Contract ◽  
Voter Models

Wage Rule Formation in the Aerospace Industry

ILR Review ◽  
1992 ◽  
Vol 45 (3) ◽  
pp. 507-522 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher L. Erickson
Keyword(s):  
Union Wage ◽  
Aerospace Industry ◽  
Wage Bargaining ◽  
Manufacturing Industries ◽  
Wage Determination ◽  
Significant Shift ◽  
Lump Sum ◽  
Aerospace Companies

This study of wage bargaining in the aerospace industry focuses particularly on lump sum bonuses, one-time cash disbursements that generally accompany lower increases in the base wage than were formerly standard. Although such bonuses, which appeared in aerospace companies before they appeared in other large manufacturing industries, were viewed as a union concession, they persisted into the 1989 bargaining round despite a sharp upturn in the fortunes of the most prominent aerospace company. The author regards that fact, as well as the weakening of both inter- and intra-industry pattern bargaining, as support for the view that a significant shift in union wage determination occurred in the 1980s. He argues, however, based on interviews with managers, union officials, and workers, that consensus has not yet been achieved on the meaning of this shift.

The 1982 Union Wage Concessions: A Turning Point for Collective Bargaining?

1983 ◽  
Vol 25 (4) ◽  
pp. 78-92 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel J. B. Mitchell
Keyword(s):  
Collective Bargaining ◽  
Turning Point ◽  
Union Wage ◽  
Common Type ◽  
Wage Determination ◽  
Cost Of Living ◽  
Gain Sharing ◽  
Income Security ◽  
Wage Cuts ◽  
Made In

Arguments that 1982 marked a turning point in union wage determination are overstated. While dramatic wage and other concessions were made during the 1982 collective-bargaining round—wage freezes were the most common type of concession, but absolute cuts were made in some wage levels—cuts and freezes touched only a small proportion of the contracts negotiated, and concession contracts themselves preserved the principles of multiyear duration and cost-of-living escalation. Some of the income security arrangements conceded by management in exchange for wage cuts or freezes will endure, and gain sharing could become a significant factor in wage determination if it is continued and becomes more widespread.

scholarly journals Union Wage Practices and Wage Dispersion within Establishments

ILR Review ◽  
1982 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 3-21 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard B. Freeman
Keyword(s):  
Union Wage ◽  
Wage Structure ◽  
Wage Determination ◽  
Wage Dispersion ◽  
Level Data ◽  
Wage Payment

This study analyzes establishment-level data primarily to examine the effect of unionism on the wage structure within establishments. The major finding is that within-establishment dispersion of wages is significantly narrower in unionized than in nonunionized establishments, a pattern the author attributes in large part to unions' wage practices, such as single rate or automatic-progression modes of wage payment as opposed to merit reviews and individual wage determination. The data also show that dispersion in average wages is narrower among organized plants, but by more modest amounts than the within-establishment differential. Overall, the evidence suggests a major role for explicit union wage policies in explaining the dispersion of wages within firms and in the economy as a whole.

Union Wage Determination in Canadian and U.S. Manufacturing, 1964–1990: A Comparative Analysis

ILR Review ◽  
1996 ◽  
Vol 49 (4) ◽  
pp. 673-689
Author(s):  
John W. Budd
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Real Wage ◽  
Union Wage ◽  
The United States ◽  
Manufacturing Firms ◽  
Wage Bargaining ◽  
Wage Determination ◽  
Nominal Wage ◽  
Real Wages ◽  
Wage Change

The author analyzes nominal and real wage changes in unionized manufacturing firms in Canada and the United States over the years 1964–90. He finds more differences between the countries' patterns of wage determination in the years 1964–79 than have commonly been recognized. In the 1980s, the nominal wage determination structure changed more sharply in the United States than in Canada. Real wage determination changed little in the United States before 1986, while after 1986 observed real wage growth was significantly smaller than what would have been predicted based on patterns of bargaining in earlier years. In Canada, real wages in the 1980s were significantly higher than they would have been if the previous patterns of wage determination had persisted. Both the nominal and real wage change results suggest that unions in U.S. manufacturing fared poorly in wage bargaining in the 1980s by comparison with their Canadian counterparts.

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