This paper examines the impact of unionization on profit- ability, growth and productivity using time series data on over 900 product line businesses in the North American manufacturing sector (predominantly U.S.). The first section of the paper develops a simple theoretical framework for...

It is widely agreed that unionization affects the rules and procedures governing the employment relation in organized establishments. The effect of these changes on establishment productivity, however, is unclear. Existing evidence is based on a comparison of union/non-union differences in value...

This paper examines the relative importance of timing and persistence elements in explaining cyclical fluctuations in labor supply. Data from the natural experiment provided by World War I1 and cross-sectional data on American local labor markets, as well as aggregate time-series data are used...

Demographic differences in patterns of employment variation over the business cycle are examined in this paper. Three primary conclusions emerge. First, both participation and unemployment must be considered in any analysis of cyclical changes in the labor market. Second, young people bear a...

This paper challenges conventional views of unemployment. Its results suggest that failure to examine closely labor force transitions has led to a misleading picture of unemployment and the way the labor market functions in general. There are four main conclusions. First, labor force transitions...

This paper uses data from four different data sets to examine the union impact on the turnout of members and their support for union-preferred candidates. It rejects the claim that the union share of the electorate rose massively in the 1990s. It finds that union members are about 12 percentage...

This paper examines the pattern of change in turnout in elections and in the rate of voting of different socioeconomic groups in the US. It shows that while the changing education and income structure of the population and changes in laws and regulations that make it easier to register and to...

The 1990s economic performance of the US suggests that the country may have the right mix of institutions and policies to be the peak capitalist economy in the new information economy. This paper develops criterion for judging peak status and examines whether the US fulfills these criterion. The...

This paper examines available industry data on two profitability measures, the price-cost margin and the ratio of quasi-rents to capital, for the purpose of determining the effect of unionism on profits. It finds that unionism reduces profitability and that this effect occurs in highly...

One of the most important questions regarding black economic gains post-1964 is whether they are permanent or transitory. This study examines the relative economic progress of black cohorts and of individual black workers in longitudinal samples to evaluate the permanence of changes. It finds...