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Wage Dispersion in a Partially Unionized Labor Force

Author

Listed:
  • John T. Addison
  • Ralph W. Bailey
  • W. Stanley Siebert
Abstract
Taking as our point of departure a model proposed by David Card (2001), we suggest new methods for analyzing wage dispersion in a partially unionized labor market. Card's method disaggregates the la- bor population into skill categories, which procedure entails some loss of information. Accordingly, we develop a model in which each worker individually is assigned a union-membership probability and predicted union and nonunion wages. The model yields a natural three-way de- composition of variance. The decomposition permits counterfactual analysis, using concepts and techniques from the theory of factorial experimental design. We examine causes of the increase in U.K. wage dispersion between 1983 and 1995. Of the factors initially considered, the most influential was a change in the structure of remuneration inside both the union and nonunion sectors. Next in importance was the decrease in union membership. Finally, exogenous changes in la- bor force characteristics had, for most groups considered, only a small negative effect. We supplement this preliminary three-factorial analy- sis with a ?ve-factorial analysis that allows us to examine effects from the wage-equation parameters in greater detail.

Suggested Citation

  • John T. Addison & Ralph W. Bailey & W. Stanley Siebert, 2009. "Wage Dispersion in a Partially Unionized Labor Force," Discussion Papers 09-04, Department of Economics, University of Birmingham.
    • Handle: RePEc:bir:birmec:09-04
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. DiNardo, John & Fortin, Nicole M & Lemieux, Thomas, 1996. "Labor Market Institutions and the Distribution of Wages, 1973-1992: A Semiparametric Approach," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 64(5), pages 1001-1044, September.
    2. Checchi, Daniele & Visser, Jelle & van de Werfhorst, Herman G., 2007. "Inequality and Union Membership: The Impact of Relative Earnings Position and Inequality Attitudes," IZA Discussion Papers 2691, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    3. Angrist, Joshua D. & Krueger, Alan B., 1999. "Empirical strategies in labor economics," Handbook of Labor Economics, in: O. Ashenfelter & D. Card (ed.), Handbook of Labor Economics, edition 1, volume 3, chapter 23, pages 1277-1366, Elsevier.
    4. Bell, B. & Pitt, M.K., 1995. "Trade Union Decline and the Distribution of Wages in the UK: Evidence from Kernel Density Estimation," Economics Papers 107, Economics Group, Nuffield College, University of Oxford.
    5. David Card & Richard B. Freeman, 1993. "Small Differences That Matter: Labor Markets and Income Maintenance in Canada and the United States," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number card93-1.
    6. Richard B. Freeman, 2005. "What Do Unions Do?-- The 2004 M-Brane Stringtwister Edition," Journal of Labor Research, Transaction Publishers, vol. 26(4), pages 641-668, November.
    7. John T. Addison & Ralph W. Bailey & W. Stanley Siebert, 2007. "The Impact of Deunionisation on Earnings Dispersion Revisited," Research in Labor Economics, in: Aspects of Worker Well-Being, pages 337-363, Emerald Group Publishing Limited.
    8. David Card & Thomas Lemieux & W. Craig Riddell, 2004. "Unions and Wage Inequality," Journal of Labor Research, Transaction Publishers, vol. 25(4), pages 519-562, October.
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    17. Amanda Gosling & Thomas Lemieux, 2004. "Labor Market Reforms and Changes in Wage Inequality in the United Kingdom and the United States," NBER Chapters, in: Seeking a Premier Economy: The Economic Effects of British Economic Reforms, 1980–2000, pages 275-312, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    18. Bell, Brian D & Pitt, Michael K, 1998. "Trade Union Decline and the Distribution of Wages in the UK: Evidence from Kernel Density Estimation," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 60(4), pages 509-528, November.
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    Cited by:

    1. Ensar Yilmaz & Sayin San, 2017. "Wage gap and dispersion in a partially unionized structure in Turkey," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 52(2), pages 577-597, March.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    wage dispersion; three-way variance decomposition; bivariate kernal density smoothing; union membership; deunionization; factorial experimental design;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D3 - Microeconomics - - Distribution
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • J51 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor-Management Relations, Trade Unions, and Collective Bargaining - - - Trade Unions: Objectives, Structure, and Effects

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