Economic Outcomes of Strikers in an Era of Weak Unions

Abstract

From 1970 to 2000, worker participation in strikes decreased by 90%. We show that strikers also experienced worse outcomes after 1981. Evidence from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics suggests that strikers enjoyed 5%–10% wage gains before the 1980s but null wage changes thereafter. Additional analyses of other survey data and collective bargaining agreements reinforce the finding that strikes since the 1980s have not been associated with increases in wages, hours, or benefits. We attribute these findings to structural labor market shifts and to a narrower deterioration in labor relations signaled by the 1981 air traffic controllers strike.

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