The Effect of Public Sector Labor laws on Collective Bargaining, Wages, and Employment / Richard B. Freeman, Robert G. Valletta.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Freeman, Richard B.

Contributor:

National Bureau of Economic Research.

Valletta, Robert G.

Series:

Working Paper Series (National Bureau of Economic Research) no. w2284.

NBER working paper series no. w2284

Language:

English

Physical Description:

1 online resource: illustrations (black and white);

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, Mass. National Bureau of Economic Research 1987.

Summary:

This paper examines the effect of the different legal environments for bargaining faced by public employees across the states on wage and employment outcomes for union and nonunion employees, and also on the extent of bargaining, using cross-section, within-city, and longitudinal analyses based on a newly-derived data set on public sector labor laws. We find that: (1) the legal environment is a significant determinant of the probability of collective bargaining coverage; (2) collective bargaining coverage raises wages and employment for covered employees; (3) a more favorable legal environment increases wages for all employees, but substantially reduces employment for employees not covered by a contract, while slightly reducing employment for employees who are covered by a contract. We also find evidence of significant spillovers of union wage effects to non-covered departments. We conclude by focusing on the effects of two specific legal provisions - arbitration and strike permitted clauses - on wages and employment.

Notes:

Print version record

June 1987.