The anticipated growth of nonprofit unionism

Although unions are not typically associated with nonprofit organizations, many nonprofit agencies have unionized work forces. The author predicts that there will be an increase in the number of unions representing nonprofit employees. Parallels are drawn between the evolution of unions in the public and nonprofit sectors.     

The threat of unionism and wage-coverage effects

This study finds that the union/nonunion wage differential decreases with local labor-market coverage. In general, SMSA coverage has a negligible impact on union wages, and nonunion wages increase significantly with coverage. This is consistent with strong threat effects operating at the local labor-market level. As with most other wage-coverage studies, however, union wages increase more quickly with industry coverage than do nonunion wages. These results support the argument that distinctly different economic processes underlie local labormarket and industry-coverage effects. Economies in the provision of union services imply that union threat effects will be most salient at the local labor-market level. Industry wage-coverage relationships are dominated by the positive effect of product-market coverage on union bargaining power. Estimated coverage effects vary by major industry groupings and are sensitive to changes in the specification of the wage equations. The author acknowledges the helpful comments of an anonymous referee and the competent research assistance of Harold Leong.     

Tax-funded unionism: The unemployment connection

Labor unions are widely regarded as private organizations which finance their activities exclusively through revenues collected from members and others who are covered by collective bargaining agreements. In reality, however, U.S. unions receive millions of dollars each year through grants and contracts from federal, state, and local governments for a variety of purposes, including aid to the unemployed; these funds are used (sometimes illegally) to finance union operations, including political activities. This article briefly explores the phenomenon of tax-funded unionism.     

Tax-funded unionism II: The facade of culture and democracy

This article investigates how unions, under the guise of promoting culture, have obtained taxpayers’ funds to finance union goals and activities, such as organizing. In addition, the establishment of the National Endowment for Democracy is examined to show how organized labor cooperated with the business community and the two political parties to obtain taxpayer funding purportedly to promote democracy abroad. The authors gratefully acknowledge research support provided by the John M. Olin Foundation, the J.M. Foundation, the Sarah Scaife Foundation, and the Earhart Foundation.     

The effect of the extent of unionism on union and nonunion wages

This paper provides estimates, derived from micro wage equations, of the effects of unionism on the wages for both union and nonunion labor. These equations control not only for union status, but also include measures of the extent of unionism in product and labor markets. The results suggest,inter alia, that an increase in the extent of unionization in an industry has substantial positive effects on the wages of nonunion as well as union workers. Increases in the extent of union coverage within an occupation, however, have little or no effect on nonunion wages.     

The future of public sector unionism in the United States

The future of nonpublic safety, non-teacher, non-federal public sector unions is bright. As a result of past success, the unions, led by AFSCME, have an organizing culture and sufficient power within the sector to maintain and increase density. However, the challenges that lie ahead in the 21st century will surely test the strength of AFSCME and the other public service unions. The large gains in public employee membership achieved in the last third of the 20th century are not likely to come with the relative ease with which they were achieved during that period. The remaining unorganized workers are in locations and occupations that have not been historically fertile ground for unions, public or private. In addition, the threat of privatization of jobs requires public unions to re-think their traditional strategies and organize in the more hostile private sector while simultaneously protecting the public sector from attacks. The public sector unions recognize that they have a tenuous grasp on their relatively strong position and must organize to maintain and strengthen their position. Absent dramatic changes in federal private sector labor law, and adoption of numerous public sector labor laws, the resources necessary for organization will be tremendous. The future is bright for the public sector unions only because they have demonstrated a willingness to adapt to change, make sacrifices, and deploy sufficient resources to achieve growth. The views herein are the author’s and do not necessarily represent the views of AFSCME.     

Doublebreasted operations and the decline of construction unionism

Labor relations in the construction industry are conducted under a legal framework that is both different and more favorable to unions than is that in industry generally. One aspect of this favored union environment is that construction employers are more subject to challenge than other employers if they operate both union and nonunion subsidiaries (“doublebreasted operations”). For almost a decade, the construction unions have attempted to obtain legislation disallowing this practice on the erroneous claims that it is unique to the construction industry and responsible for the decline of construction unions. This article examines the facts of the case and concludes that having both union and nonunion construction subsidiaries is no different from having both union and nonunion manufacturing subsidiaries insofar as the structure and operational organization of such companies are concerned; that the initial National Labor Relation Board decision in regard to doublebreasted operations in the construction industry was merely an application of precedent of some years previous in other industries; and that construction industry doublebreasted operations are much more a result than a cause of union decline. Professor Emeritus of Management; formerly, Professor of Industry; Director, Industrial Research Unit; and Chairman, Labor Relations Council.     

Tax-funded unionism III: Front organizations

This article shows that unions are deeply involved in nonprofit organizations which ostensibly pursue such goals as helping the elderly and protecting consumers, but a major goal of these organizations is to obtain taxpayer funds for union organizing and other activities. The senior citizens’ political movement, for example, is controlled by union officials who use the movement to further union objectives. The authors gratefully acknowledge research support provided by the John M. Olin Foundation, the J.M. Foundation, the Sarah Scaife Foundation, and the Earhart Foundation.     

The effect of unionism on productivity in privately and publicly owned hospitals and nursing homes

This paper examines the effect of unions on productivity within a sample of publicly and privately owned hospitals and nursing homes to determine whether public ownership influences union behavior. The results show that the productivity of union contractors is much greater in private than in public projects. Within the sample of private projects, the estimates of the union-nonunion productivity difference are generally positive but very imprecise. Financial support was provided by the U.S. Department of Labor and the National Science Foundation. Steve Margolis gave me some helpful comments on an earlier draft. Katherine Foote provided excellent research assistance, and Jim Comer once again did a masterful job in getting the data set in shape.