Explaining the Younger– Older Worker Union Density Gap: Evidence from New Zealand

Abstract

This paper uses two recent large-scale surveys in New Zealand to test the various reasons given for lower rates of union membership among younger workers. Younger workers' disproportionate location in smaller workplaces and those industries where union reach is lowest accounts for a substantial part of their lower union density. Along with the tendency of younger workers to explore their options through labour turnover, this factor offers a much better explanation for the younger-older worker union density gap than do assertions about a growth in individualism in Generations X and Y. Copyright Blackwell Publishing Ltd/London School of Economics 2005.

First-Timers and Late-Bloomers: Youth—Adult Unionization Differences in a Cohort of the U.S. Labor Force

“…Moreover, these results demonstrate that youth-adult differences in unionization are strongest for the very youngest workers (up to age 17), and largely disappear by age 23. These findings are important because the previous literature has tended to group all youths together (e.g., Bryson et al 2005;Gomez, Gunderson, and Meltz 2002), and, in some cases, to use an age cut-off for youths of 30 years old (Freeman and Diamond 2003;Haynes, Vowles, and Boxall 2005). We can now see that both approaches mask important aspects of youth-adult differences in U.S. union coverage rates.…”

“…Bryson et al (2005), for example, motivate their study of youth-adult differences in unionization by showing that unionization rates for workers aged 25-65 are three times higher than for those aged 15-24 in the United States and Canada, and two times higher in Britain. A similar pattern is evident in New Zealand and other countries (Haynes, Vowles, and Boxall 2005). Consequently, a number of studies specifically examine younger workers' attitudes towards unions (e.g., Blanden and Machin 2003;Freeman and Diamond 2003;Gallagher 1999;Gomez, Gunderson, and Meltz 2002;Lowe and Rastin 2000;Spilsbury et al 1987).…”

Who Joins Trade Unions? Testing New Sociological Explanations

“…While this question has not been systematically addressed until now, prior studies provide some insights into this possibility. For instance, studies based on survey data consistently find that young workers are considerably less likely to [6] be trade union members than their older counterparts (Bryson and Gomez 2005;Haynes et al 2005;Machin 2004;Schnabel and Wagner 2005;Western 1994;Windolf and Haas 1989). In the context of the Dutch labour market, Visser (2002) uses the 'social customs' theory to explain declining participation in trade unions.…”

“…Several important findings emerge from these types of studies. First, it appears that younger workers are considerably less likely to join trade unions than their older counterparts (Brady 2007;Bryson and Gomez 2005;Haynes et al 2005;Machin 2004;Schnabel and Wagner 2005;Western 1994;Windolf and Haas 1989). Second, workers with left-leaning political views are more likely to be trade union members than workers with centre or right-leaning political views (Bryson and Gomez 2005;Schnabel andWagner 2005, 2007;Windolf and Haas 1989).…”

Trade Liberalization, Import Penetration and Unionization: The U.S. Experience

“…These factors include general market conditions affecting unemployment rates, regulations governing labor standards and Social Security, union recruitment strategies, unions' prior success in bargaining, predominant social and political values [33], and employers' opposition to unionization [15]. To control for these factors, we include industry and time fixed effects in our econometric specification.…”