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Trade Unions, Efficiency Wages, and Shirking

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  • Bulkley, George
  • Myles, Gareth D

Abstract

Efficiency wage models typically study the determination of wages and effort levels in the context of a labour market where the supply side is competitive. In this paper, the authors examine the effects of unionization on wages and effort. In addition to the monitoring technology where a noisy signal of each workers performance is received, they propose and investigate a spot-check monitoring technology where the effort of a fraction of workers is measured exactly. They examine models where the union can bargain over wages alone, and over wages and effort. In all cases, the authors show that the popular wisdom that unions reduce effort is generally false. Copyright 1996 by Royal Economic Society.

Suggested Citation

  • Bulkley, George & Myles, Gareth D, 1996. "Trade Unions, Efficiency Wages, and Shirking," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 48(1), pages 75-88, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:oxecpp:v:48:y:1996:i:1:p:75-88
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Arzu Yavuz, 2011. "Productivity and Wage Differentials between Private and Public Sector in the Developing Countries (Gelismekte Olan �lkelerde �zel ve Kamu Sekt�r�ndeki Verimlilik ve �cret Farklilasmasi)," Working Papers 1103, Research and Monetary Policy Department, Central Bank of the Republic of Turkey.
    2. Francis Green & Steven McIntosh, 1998. "Union Power, Cost of Job Loss, and Workers' Effort," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 51(3), pages 363-383, April.
    3. Koskela, E. & Stenbacka, R., 2000. "Compensation and Bargaining with Entrepreneurship as the Outside Option," University of Helsinki, Department of Economics 479, Department of Economics.
    4. Erkki Koskela & Ronnie Schöb, 2012. "Tax Progression under Collective Wage Bargaining and Individual Effort Determination," Industrial Relations: A Journal of Economy and Society, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 51(3), pages 749-771, July.
    5. Koskela, Erkki & König, Jan, 2009. "Can Profit Sharing Lower Flexible Outsourcing? A Note," IZA Discussion Papers 4063, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    6. Henrik Jacobsen Kleven & Peter Birch Sørensen, "undated". "Labour Tax Reform, The Good Jobs and the Bad Jobs," EPRU Working Paper Series 99-01, Economic Policy Research Unit (EPRU), University of Copenhagen. Department of Economics.
    7. Koskela, Erkki & Stenbacka, Rune, 2003. "Profit Sharing and Unemployment: An Approach with Bargaining and Efficiency Wage Economics," Discussion Papers 863, The Research Institute of the Finnish Economy.
    8. Novella Maugeri, 2010. "Macroeconomic Implications of Near Rational Behavior: an Application to the Italian Phillips Curve," Department of Economics University of Siena 587, Department of Economics, University of Siena.
    9. Canegallo, Claudia, 1999. "Funzionamento del mercato del lavoro in presenza di informazione asimmetrica. Una rassegna della letteratura," POLIS Working Papers 8, Institute of Public Policy and Public Choice - POLIS.
    10. Koskela, Erkki & Stenbacka, Rune, 2003. "Equilibrium unemployment under negotiated profit sharing," Bank of Finland Research Discussion Papers 19/2003, Bank of Finland.
    11. Frank Scharr, 2005. "Tarifbindung, Rententeilung und Konzessionsverträge als Einflussgrößen der Lohnhöhe in Unternehmen : eine Untersuchung mit Mikrodaten für thüringische Firmen," ifo Dresden Studien, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich, number 39, May.
    12. Bo Sandemann Rasmussen, "undated". "Efficiency Wages and the Long-Run Incidence of Progressive Taxation," Economics Working Papers 2001-5, Department of Economics and Business Economics, Aarhus University.
    13. Erkki Koskela & Rune Stenbacka, 2000. "Capital Structure, Wage Bargaining and Employment," CESifo Working Paper Series 275, CESifo.
    14. Bulkley, George & Myles, Gareth D., 1997. "Bargaining over effort," European Journal of Political Economy, Elsevier, vol. 13(2), pages 375-384, May.
    15. Erkki Koskela & Rune Stenbacka, 2004. "Profit Sharing and Unemployment: An Approach with Bargaining and Efficiency-Wage Effects," Journal of Institutional and Theoretical Economics (JITE), Mohr Siebeck, Tübingen, vol. 160(3), pages 477-497, September.
    16. repec:zbw:bofrdp:2003_019 is not listed on IDEAS
    17. Altenburg, Lutz & Straub, Martin, 2001. "Taxes on labour and unemployment in a shirking model with union bargaining," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 8(6), pages 721-744, December.
    18. Gose, Karina & Sadrieh, Abdolkarim, 2014. "Strike, coordination, and dismissal in uniform wage settings," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 70(C), pages 145-158.
    19. Koskela, Erkki & Stenbacka, Rune, 2003. "Equilibrium Unemployment Under Negotiated Profit Sharing," IZA Discussion Papers 840, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    20. Fabio D'Orlando, 2004. "Endogenous employment rate in the efficiency wage shirking approach," International Advances in Economic Research, Springer;International Atlantic Economic Society, vol. 10(2), pages 113-122, May.
    21. Goerke, Laszlo, 1997. "Taxes in an efficiency wage economy," Discussion Papers, Series II 335, University of Konstanz, Collaborative Research Centre (SFB) 178 "Internationalization of the Economy".
    22. Gareth D. Myles & Hana Yousefi, 2020. "Corruption as an Occupational Choice: Endogenous Corruption and Tax Policy," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 86(4), pages 1446-1474, April.
    23. Manuel David Cruz, 2022. "Labor productivity, real wages, and employment: evidence from a panel of OECD economies over 1960-2019," Working Papers PKWP2203, Post Keynesian Economics Society (PKES).

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