WAGES AND EMPLOYMENT IN PUBLIC-SECTOR UNIONS

We model the politics of wage and employment determination for unionized public-sector workers who can strike. If the employment level affects the identity of the decisive voter in budget referenda and other elections, then unions may be able to increase wages by increasing employment. We identify conditions under which public sector unionization will lead to increased wages and employment; we also show that a majority of voters may favor unionization. (JEL 545, J51, H4)     

The role of postsecondary education in welfare reform. Ohio's JOBS Student Retention Program

The 1996 federal welfare reform legislation encourages quick employment over education and training for the nation's welfare recipients. However, some argue that a one-size-fits-all approach ignores the heterogeneity of this population. This article presents findings from a net impact evaluation of Ohio's JOBS Student Retention Program (JSRP), a program designed to facilitate success for public assistance recipients at 2-year community or technical colleges. The authors evaluate this policy using state administrative data sets. The analyses consist of unadjusted and regression-adjusted comparisons of means for the JSRP group and a constructed comparison group. Outcomes examined include program completion, employment, earnings, and welfare recipiency. Focusing on the most recent 11 of 16 quarters of data available, the average increase in quarterly earnings was 8.45% for program participants and 12.91% for program completers. The results indicate that encouraging postsecondary education for some welfare recipients will boost earnings capacity and therefore long-term self-sufficiency.     

DO REEMPLOYMENT PROGRAMS FOR THE UNEMPLOYED WORK FOR YOUTH? EVIDENCE FROM THE GREAT RECESSION IN THE UNITED STATES

We present experimental evidence on the effects of four U.S. reemployment programs for youth unemployment insurance (UI) recipients during the Great Recession. The three programs that emphasized monitoring and service referrals reduced UI receipt but had minimal effects on employment and earnings; these programs mainly induced the early exit of participants. The fourth program, which combined mandatory job counseling with monitoring, caused the largest reductions in UI receipt and clearly increased employment and earnings. Both early participant exits and effective job counseling underlie these impacts. We conclude that policymakers should require job counseling for youth UI recipients during recessions. (JEL J0, J6, H4)     

The division of union rents

In this paper, a median voter model that recognizes the trade-off between higher wages and lower levels of employment is presented. It is argued that a seniority-based layoff rule creates the opportunity for mutually beneficial side-payments between older and younger workers. As a result, older workers reap more of the rents of unionization than do younger workers. The resulting distribution of union rents is found to be consistent with existing empirical evidence. We would like to thank Mike Baye and Gene Grossman for most useful comments on earlier versions of this paper. Any remaining errors, of course, are solely our responsibility.     

Providing Employment Assistance to Students: The Role of Social Work Education

Abstract

This paper reports the results of a national survey of 130 graduate and undergraduate social work programs that was designed to learn what schools are doing to help students locate and secure employment after graduation. Less than half (43%) of the responding schools indicated that they have a formal program of employment assistance services. Size of student enrollment and size of faculty were the only factors that differentiated schools that offer employment assistance services from those that do not. The study's implications for social work education are discussed, and an employment assistance program model is presented.     

Residence laws and unionization in municipal labor markets: The case of firefighters

An estimate is made of the impact of residence laws and unionization on compensation (wages plus major fringe benefits) as well as on employment of municipal firefighters. In addition, hypotheses about the manner in which residence laws exert these effects are econometrically tested using data obtained by surveying the mayors of 560 municipalities. The standard view — that is, that residence laws restrict labor supply — is not supported by the empirical evidence. Rather, the data are consistent with the hypothesis that residence laws affect compensation by altering the bargaining environment; for example, effects of unions are weaker when there are residence laws. The authors would like to express their appreciation to David Lewin and Ronald Ehrenberg for their helpful advice and thoughtful comments, and to two anonymous referees for suggestions which indubitably improved the paper. Significant research assistance was provided by Glen Elder. Financial support by the Institute of Industrial Relations is gratefully acknowledged.     

It Kind of Made Me Feel Important

Abstract

The enactment of the Personal Responsibility Work Opportunity and Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) in 1996 led to sweeping changes in U.S. welfare policy and practice. Given the time limits placed on adult recipients of cash assistance, and the multiple barriers to employment that many of these recipients face, alternative intervention strategies need to be developed. Welfare-to-work interventions provided by faith-based groups are one such intervention strategy. This paper discusses the rationale for faith-based services and introduces research conducted on one particular faith-based model of intervention for the target population. Findings presented center on participants' perceptions of the faith-based services they received, particularly on aspects of the program that were helpful and meaningful to them.     

More than just nickels and dimes: a cross-national analysis of working poverty in affluent democracies

Despite its centrality to contemporary inequality, working poverty is often popularly discussed but rarely studied by sociologists. Using the Luxembourg Income Study (2009), we analyze whether an individual is working poor across 18 affluent democracies circa 2000. We demonstrate that working poverty does not simply mirror overall poverty and that there is greater cross-national variation in working than overall poverty. We then examine four explanations for working poverty: demographic characteristics, economic performance, unified theory, and welfare generosity. We utilize Heckman probit models to jointly model the likelihood of employment and poverty among the employed. Our analyses provide the least support for the economic performance explanation. There is modest support for unified theory as unionization reduces working poverty in some models. However, most of these effects appear to be mediated by welfare generosity. More substantial evidence exists for the demographic characteristics and welfare generosity explanations. An individual's likelihood of being working poor can be explained by (a) a lack of multiple earners or other adults in one's household, low education, single motherhood, having children and youth; and (b) the generosity of the welfare state in which he or she resides. Also, welfare generosity does not undermine employment and reduces working poverty even among demographically vulnerable groups. Ultimately, we encourage a greater role for the welfare state in debates about working poverty.     

Explaining Client Satisfaction with an Employee Assistance Program

ABSTRACT

The first objective of this paper is to explore the psychometric qualities as well as the usefulness of an employee assistance program client satisfaction scale. The responses obtained from 82 clients of an external service provider permitted a validation of the satisfaction scale and ultimately the selection of five items showing stronger convergent validity as well as high reliability (alpha = .89). The second objective is to explore the possible relationships between demographic (gender, age), treatment (referral-type, type of problem, urgency, degree of resolution) and organizational variables (unionization, job category, sector, size), and variations in client satisfaction levels. The results of bivariate analysis indicate that the type of referral, the type of problem, and the degree of resolution of the problem are related to client satisfaction. This study provides some support for the inclusion of treatment variables in a comprehensive explanatory model of client satisfaction. It is further argued that client satisfaction is an adequate measure of the success of an employee assistance program. Finally, some methodological issues surrounding the use of such surveys are discussed.     

Unions and Employment Growth: Evidence from State Economic Recoveries

We test the hypothesis that in an economic recovery, unionization negatively affects job creation. We examine state-level job growth following two recent recessions, those with troughs in November 1982 and March 1991. In the five years following the troughs, we assess whether variations across states in union membership and right-to-work laws affect the rate of job growth. We find evidence that links union influence to slower job growth during an economic recovery, a finding consistent with previous studies reporting that unions negatively affect average employment and employment growth.

Unionization and nonunion wage patterns:

conclusion We argue that a nonunion worker’s support for unionization depends not only on the expected gain in wages, but also on the probability of retaining employment after union-ization. Incorporating this point generates no prediction that low-wage workers will receive the largest threat-induced supplements as they are the ones who are least likely to retain their jobs after unionization. In short, which group of workers will receive the largest union induced wage supplement is ambiguous.     

OLIGOPOLY CAPITALISM, LABOR ORGANIZATION, AND WAGES OF WORKERS IN AMERICAN MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES

This article investigates the interaction between oligopoly power, labor unionization, and worker wages. Using data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics for workers in manufacturing industries little evidence is found that workers are exploited by oligopolistic employers, but rather wages for production workers increase with both unionization and employer's market power. There is evidence, however, that unionization reduces variation in wages due to increased oligopoly power.     

Career Counseling Strategies to Facilitate the Welfare‐to‐Work Transition: The Case of Jeanetta

Changes in welfare policy require recipients to find employment and created a need for effective career counseling strategies. Welfare recipients face both environmental and personal barriers that affect employability and career development. Issues such as the employment market, the availability of needed community resources, and the stress of being a single parent need to be understood before appropriate career counseling can occur. In this article, the author discusses possible barriers to career counseling and suggests effective career counseling methods for individuals who receive public assistance payments.     

Direct and indirect effects of unionization on the wage levels of nurses: A case study of New Jersey hospitals

This study examines the determination of wage rates for nurses in hospital employment. Of particular concern is the effect of the recent increase in unionization by nurses on their wages, both directly and indirectly via threats from competing hospitals’ unionization. To improve on earlier work, the data are disaggregated and gathered from only one state to standardize for the legal, licensing, and reimbursement systems. We also look at the difference between highly skilled professional nurses, RN’s, and more general and less professional nurses, LPN’s. The results show that working conditions and competition in the market influence the wage rate as one would expect. The unionization of nurses, however, affects the wage levels differently for the two groups. We would like to thank Professors Robert Higgs and Alan Childs of Lafayette College, Professor David Fairris of Williams College, Professor James C. Luzier of Muhlenberg College, and an anonymous referee for their helpful comments and suggestions.     

Commitment to mothering and preference for employment: The voices of women on public assistance with young children

This study uses qualitative data to examine how welfare-dependent women with young children feel about the employment mandate in the 1996 welfare reform legislation, Personal Work Responsibility Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PWRORA). The voices of poor women have been overlooked in the policy debate about welfare reform, as well as in the social science literature. The data were drawn from individual and group interviews done with 14 women on public assistance during the initial phase of their participation in a voluntary welfare-to-work program. The women in this sample report that they have strong positive feelings about working outside of the home, as well as strong reservations. The paper presents new data on low-income women's role preference and perceived conflict regarding employment when their children are young. All the women in the sample had children under 2 years of age. The data demonstrate that there are aspects of role preference and conflict with employment that are unique to women on public assistance, as well as aspects that are universal across income groups.     

Employment and filial relations: Is there a conflict?

Since children, particularly daughters, are among the most important sources of help and support for older Americans, it has been suggested that women's increasing employment will affect filial relations. Empirical evidence on this issue is inconsistent, in part due to the use of nonprobability samples. Few studies have measured effects for men. We attempt to broaden the scope of this question beyond help to the frail elderly by asking whether employment affects filial relations in general. We examine effects of hours employed on telephone contact, visiting, feelings of closeness, filial attitudes, and assistance to biological parents, for an area probability sample of men and women over 40. There are no effects of employment for men or women on contact, closeness, or assistance. For the vast majority of this population sample, contact and assistance involve few hours per week, and thus do not seem to conflict with employment.     

Transition From Welfare to Work: Self-Esteem and Self-Efficacy Influence on the Employment Outcome of African American Women

Empirical strength-based research focusing exclusively on African American female welfare recipients and employment outcome is limited. This study examined whether self-esteem and self-efficacy influenced the employment of African American female welfare recipients. Findings indicated that recipients entered the job-readiness program with a significantly high level of self-esteem. Their self-efficacy, however, was positively influenced by the job-readiness program, and once it was completed, the recipient's self-efficacy decreased.     

Assisting Parents and In‐Laws: Gender,Type of Assistance,and Couples’ Employment

We use 1995 MIDUS data (n = 2,085) to assess whether the gender gap in help persists across different types of help (unpaid task assistance, emotional support, financial assistance) to parents and in‐laws. We also examine whether joint employment patterns influence levels of help. Persistent gender differences are identified in levels of emotional support to parents and in‐laws: Women spend more time than men giving this help. There are no gender differences in levels of unpaid task assistance or financial assistance to parents or in‐laws. Individuals in single‐earner couples, however, provide greater levels of unpaid task assistance to in‐laws and financial assistance to parents than individuals in dual‐earner couples. Furthermore, financial assistance to parents is positively linked to work hours.     

Self-Employment as a Social and Economic Development Intervention for Recipients of AFDC

Summary

This paper reports findings from program evaluations of two demonstrations designed to (1) test self-employment as a social and economic development strategy for recipients of AFDC, and (2) identify policy barriers to improving the economic well-being of this population. The authors collected data through interviews with program participants and program operators and used secondary data contained in operators' management information systems and state Department of Human Services electronic files. Program results showed that self-employment is a viable social and economic development strategy for self-selected welfare recipients who receive business training and assistance in locating operating capital. The paper discusses implications for social work practice, education, and research.     

Productive Engagement Among Older Americans: Prevalence,Patterns, and Implications for Public Policy

This study estimates the prevalence of productive engagement among adults aged 60 and over residing in the United States over a nine-year period. We analyze three waves of data from the Americans' Changing Lives Study, which allows the findings to describe the non-institutionalized older American population. Focusing upon five activities—formal paid employment, irregular paid work, unpaid volunteerism, caregiving, and informal assistance to others—we identify changes in the engagement rates, examine the extent to which engagement occurs through single or multiple concurrent activities, and document intra-individual patterns of engagement within and across forms of productive activity, including the continuity, initiation, and cessation of involvement. The findings reveal that late-life productive engagement is widespread, with the majority of older individuals involved in multiple forms of activity concurrently. Non–market-based activities such as caregiving, informal assistance, and volunteering are most prevalent. Initiation and cessation of activities are common and yield more complex patterns and lower rates of non-participation than are revealed in cross-sectional analyses. Time spent in productive engagement is highly variable and exhibits an overall decline across time. We conclude by highlighting policy strategies to increase the availability and quality of opportunities for productive engagement and promote planning for engagement in late life.