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Union Membership in the United States: The Decline Continues

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  • Henry S. Farber

    (Princeton University)

  • Alan B. Krueger

    (Princeton University)

Abstract

We use a demand/supply framework to analyze 1) the decline in union membership since 1977 in the United States and 2) the difference in unionization rates between the United States and Canada. We extend earlier work on these problems by analyzing new data for 1991 from the General Social Survey and for 1992 from our own household survey on worker preferences for union representation. When combined with earlier data for 1977 from the Quality of Employment Survey and for 1984 from a survey conducted for the AFl-CIO, we are able to decompose changes in unionization into changes in demand and changes in supply. We also analyze data for 1990 from a survey conducted for the Canadian Federation of Labor on the preferences of Canadian workers for union representation. We find that virtually all of the decline in union membership in the United States between 1977 and 1991 is due to a decline in worker demand for union representation. There was almost no change over this period in the relative supply of union jobs. Additionally, very little of the decline in unionization in the U.S. can be accounted for by structural shifts in the composition of the labor force. Next, we find that all of the higher unionization rate in the U.S. public sector in 1984 can be accounted for by higher demand for unionization and that there is actually more frustrated demand for union representation in the public sector. Finally, we tentatively conclude that the difference in unionization rates between the U.S. and Canada is accounted for roughly in equal measure by differences in demand and in supply.

Suggested Citation

  • Henry S. Farber & Alan B. Krueger, 1992. "Union Membership in the United States: The Decline Continues," Working Papers 685, Princeton University, Department of Economics, Industrial Relations Section..
    • Handle: RePEc:pri:indrel:306
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. W. Craig Riddell, 1993. "Unionization in Canada and the United States: A Tale of Two Countries," NBER Chapters, in: Small Differences That Matter: Labor Markets and Income Maintenance in Canada and the United States, pages 109-148, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    2. Richard Freeman, 1990. "On the Divergence of Unionism among Developed Countries," International Economic Association Series, in: Renato Brunetta & Carlo Dell’Aringa (ed.), Labour Relations and Economic Performance, chapter 12, pages 304-322, Palgrave Macmillan.
    3. Leo Troy, 1992. "Convergence in International Unionism, etc. The Case of Canada and the USA," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 30(1), pages 1-43, March.
    4. Farber, Henry S, 1990. "The Decline of Unionization in the United States: What Can Be Learned from Recent Experience," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 8(1), pages 75-105, January.
    5. Freeman, Richard B, 1988. "Contraction and Expansion: The Divergence of Private Sector and Public Sector Unionism in the United States," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 2(2), pages 63-88, Spring.
    6. Farber, Henry S, 1989. "Trends in Worker Demand for Union Representation," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 79(2), pages 166-171, May.
    7. Farber, Henry S., 1983. "The Determination of the Union Status of Workers," The Warwick Economics Research Paper Series (TWERPS) 227, University of Warwick, Department of Economics.
    8. Henry S. Farber, 1989. "Trends in Worker Demand for Union Representation," NBER Working Papers 2857, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    9. Richard B. Freeman & Casey Ichniowski, 1988. "When Public Sector Workers Unionize," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number free88-1.
    10. Farber, Henry S, 1983. "The Determination of the Union Status of Workers," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 51(5), pages 1417-1437, September.
    11. John M. Abowd & Henry S. Farber, 1982. "Job Queues and the Union Status of Workers," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 35(3), pages 354-367, April.
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    Cited by:

    1. Alex Bryson & Richard Freeman, 2013. "Employee Perceptions of Working Conditions and the Desire for Worker Representation in Britain and the US," Journal of Labor Research, Springer, vol. 34(1), pages 1-29, March.
    2. Breda, Thomas & Bryson, Alex & Forth, John, 2019. "Productivity Dynamics: The Role of Competition in a Service Industry," IZA Discussion Papers 12809, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    3. Baris Kaymak & Omer Acikgoz, 2011. "The Rising Skill Premium and Deunionization in the United States," 2011 Meeting Papers 1433, Society for Economic Dynamics.
    4. Hornstein, Andreas & Krusell, Per & Violante, Giovanni L., 2005. "The Effects of Technical Change on Labor Market Inequalities," Handbook of Economic Growth, in: Philippe Aghion & Steven Durlauf (ed.), Handbook of Economic Growth, edition 1, volume 1, chapter 20, pages 1275-1370, Elsevier.
    5. W. Craig Riddell, 1993. "Unionization in Canada and the United States: A Tale of Two Countries," NBER Chapters, in: Small Differences That Matter: Labor Markets and Income Maintenance in Canada and the United States, pages 109-148, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    6. Guerrazzi, Marco, 2024. "Wage Bargaining and Capital Accumulation: A Dynamic Version of the Monopoly Union Model," GLO Discussion Paper Series 1515, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    7. Hornstein, Andreas & Krusell, Per & Violante, Giovanni L., 2005. "The Effects of Technical Change on Labor Market Inequalities," Handbook of Economic Growth, in: Philippe Aghion & Steven Durlauf (ed.), Handbook of Economic Growth, edition 1, volume 1, chapter 20, pages 1275-1370, Elsevier.
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    9. Barry T. Hirsch & Edward J. Schumacher, 2001. "Private Sector Union Density and the Wage Premium: Past, Present, and Future ," Journal of Labor Research, Transaction Publishers, vol. 22(3), pages 487-518, July.
    10. Acemoglu, Daron & Aghion, Philippe & Violante, Giovanni L., 2001. "Deunionization, technical change and inequality," Carnegie-Rochester Conference Series on Public Policy, Elsevier, vol. 55(1), pages 229-264, December.
    11. Cramton, Peter & Tracy, Joseph, 1998. "The Use of Replacement Workers in Union Contract Negotiations: The U.S. Experience, 1980-1989," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 16(4), pages 667-701, October.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    union membership; demand for unions;

    JEL classification:

    • C52 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric Modeling - - - Model Evaluation, Validation, and Selection

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