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Dividend Signaling and Unions

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  • Arturo, Ramirez Verdugo

Abstract

Dividend signaling models suggest that dividends are used to convey information about future earnings to investors. However, in a world where unions also receive these signals, managers are less inclined to send the signal in order to avoid the union capturing these future earnings through higher salaries. Using information from IRS 5500 Forms to measure firm level unionization, I found that the power of dividends as predictors of future earnings tends to be higher for non-unionized firms. Moreover, I use the variation at the state level in the adoption of right-to-work laws to overcome the possible endogeneity of unionization with an instrumental variables approach. The empirical results are robust to different specifications and time periods

Suggested Citation

  • Arturo, Ramirez Verdugo, 2004. "Dividend Signaling and Unions," MPRA Paper 2273, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 04 Oct 2006.
    • Handle: RePEc:pra:mprapa:2273
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Dividends; Signaling; Unions;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J51 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor-Management Relations, Trade Unions, and Collective Bargaining - - - Trade Unions: Objectives, Structure, and Effects
    • G35 - Financial Economics - - Corporate Finance and Governance - - - Payout Policy

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