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Centralised wage bargaining and structural change in Sweden

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  • Alexopoulos, Michelle
  • Cohen, Jon

Abstract

There is a general consensus among scholars that centralised wage bargaining played a key role in the ability of Sweden to maintain wage moderation in the early post-World War II period. Conventional wisdom suggests that it worked through one of two mechanisms: internalisation of the negative externalities associated with excessive wage settlements or implicit contracts that favoured cooperation between capital and labour over conflict. We contend, instead, that centralised wage bargaining was introduced because Swedish firms and unions adopted the Rehn-Meidner plan. In this environment, centralised wage bargaining was used to facilitate wage compression from below and promote labour release. Wage moderation then was a result of shifts in the labour supply. In the final section of the article we argue that excessive wage compression in the 1970s sapped the morale and effort of skilled workers, pushed down productivity and profits and eventually led to the demise of centralised wage determination.

Suggested Citation

  • Alexopoulos, Michelle & Cohen, Jon, 2003. "Centralised wage bargaining and structural change in Sweden," European Review of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 7(3), pages 331-363, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:ereveh:v:7:y:2003:i:03:p:331-363_00
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Paul Teague, 2009. "Path Dependency and Comparative Industrial Relations: The Case of Conflict Resolution Systems in Ireland and Sweden," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 47(3), pages 499-520, September.
    2. Yılmaz Kılıç aslan & Erol Taymaz, 2009. "Labor market institutions and industrial performance: an evolutionary study," Springer Books, in: Uwe Cantner & Jean-Luc Gaffard & Lionel Nesta (ed.), Schumpeterian Perspectives on Innovation, Competition and Growth, pages 207-222, Springer.
    3. Sonia Bhalotra & Martin Karlsson & Therese Nilsson & Nina Schwarz, 2022. "Infant Health, Cognitive Performance, and Earnings: Evidence from Inception of the Welfare State in Sweden," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 104(6), pages 1138-1156, November.
    4. Chris Minns & Marian Rizov, 2015. "Institutions, history and wage bargaining outcomes: international evidence from the post-World War Two era," Business History, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 57(3), pages 358-375, April.
    5. Eric Bengtsson & Engelbert Stockhammer, 2018. "Wages, income distribution and economic growth in Scandinavia," Working Papers PKWP1811, Post Keynesian Economics Society (PKES).
    6. Erik Bengtsson, 2014. "Labour's share in twentieth-century Sweden: a reinterpretation," Scandinavian Economic History Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 62(3), pages 290-314, November.
    7. Bengtsson, Erik, 2019. "The Origins of the Swedish Wage Bargaining Model," Lund Papers in Economic History 195, Lund University, Department of Economic History.
    8. Hällsten, Martin & Pfeffer, Fabian T., 2017. "Grand advantage: family wealth and grandchildren's educational achievement in Sweden," Working Paper Series 2017:3, IFAU - Institute for Evaluation of Labour Market and Education Policy.

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