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Price competition, merger and welfare under firm-specific unions: on the role of unions' preference towards wages

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Listed:
  • Luciano Fanti
  • Nicola Meccheri

Abstract

This paper analyses the effects of a downstream merger in a differentiated duopoly under price competition and firm-specific unions. In contrast with the acquired wisdom, we show that a downstream merger may increase overall welfare when products are sufficienly substitutes and unions are sufficiently oriented towards wages.

Suggested Citation

  • Luciano Fanti & Nicola Meccheri, 2012. "Price competition, merger and welfare under firm-specific unions: on the role of unions' preference towards wages," Discussion Papers 2012/136, Dipartimento di Economia e Management (DEM), University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.
    • Handle: RePEc:pie:dsedps:2012/136
    Note: ISSN 2039-1854
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    File URL: https://www.ec.unipi.it/documents/Ricerca/papers/2012-136.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Lommerud, Kjell Erik & Straume, Odd Rune & Sorgard, Lars, 2005. "Downstream merger with upstream market power," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 49(3), pages 717-743, April.
    2. repec:bla:scandj:v:87:y:1985:i:2:p:197-225 is not listed on IDEAS
    3. Henrick Horn & Asher Wolinsky, 1988. "Bilateral Monopolies and Incentives for Merger," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 19(3), pages 408-419, Autumn.
    4. Petrakis, Emmanuel & Vlassis, Minas, 2000. "Endogenous scope of bargaining in a union-oligopoly model: when will firms and unions bargain over employment?," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 7(3), pages 261-281, May.
    5. Kurt R. Brekke, 2004. "Competition or Coordination in Hospital Markets with Unionised Labour," International Journal of Health Economics and Management, Springer, vol. 4(1), pages 65-89, March.
    6. Symeonidis, George, 2010. "Downstream merger and welfare in a bilateral oligopoly," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 28(3), pages 230-243, May.
    7. John H. Pencavel, 1984. "The Tradeoff Between Wages and Employment in Trade Union Objectives," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 99(2), pages 215-231.
    8. Dowrick, Steve & Spencer, Barbara J, 1994. "Union Attitudes to Labor-Saving Innovation: When Are Unions Luddites?," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 12(2), pages 316-344, April.
    9. Office of Health Economics, 2007. "The Economics of Health Care," For School 001490, Office of Health Economics.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    mergers; social welfare; price competition; plant-specific unions.;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D43 - Microeconomics - - Market Structure, Pricing, and Design - - - Oligopoly and Other Forms of Market Imperfection
    • L13 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Oligopoly and Other Imperfect Markets
    • J50 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor-Management Relations, Trade Unions, and Collective Bargaining - - - General

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