Dissertation Information for Christopher L. Erickson NAME: - Christopher L. Erickson
DEGREE:
- Ph.D.
DISCIPLINE:
- Economics
SCHOOL:
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology (USA) (1990)
ADVISORS: - None COMMITTEE MEMBERS: - None
MPACT Status: Incomplete - Not_Inspected
Title: Union wage determination in manufacturing in the 1980s: Three empirical investigations
Abstract: "An influential and recurring proposition in current industrial relations research is that a stable system of union wage determination existed throughout the post-war period and has unravelled recently. This dissertation tests and documents this basic hypothesis and examines some of the key changes that have occurred in wage determination in the unionized large-establishment manufacturing sector.
The first chapter addresses two key questions: has union wage growth after the late 1970s systematically differed from the period prior to the oil shocks, and what role have economic and institutional factors played in the determination of union wages? Basic conclusions: (1) an analysis of out-of-sample predictions indicates that union wage determination in the late 1970s and the early 1980s systematically differed from the prior two decades while wage outcomes in the mid 1970s did not represent such a systematic break from the period prior to the first oil shock; and (2) ""institutional"" forces such as pattern bargaining and bargaining structure did have an independent influence on union wage growth which has diminished somewhat recently.
The second chapter examines a key change in the form of compensation increases: the shift from general wage increases to lump sum bonuses. The chapter's main findings are that the existence of an uncertain environment increases the probability of observing a bonus contract and that bonus contracts provide for larger growth in total compensation within the life of a single contract than straight wage contracts adopted under similar circumstances.
The final chapter examines the process of compensation determination in a particular setting: the recent evolution of wage rules in the aerospace industry. Inter- and intra-industry patterns have begun to collapse along with the previously stable industry wage rule of essentially ""3% general wage increase plus COLA"" as lump sum bonuses have replaced and augmented general wage increases. While the bonuses are apparently popular among a large portion of the rank and file, the unions strongly oppose them; the unions have nevertheless become more sophisticated in their analyses of the companies' financial and product market conditions, to which nearly all parties perceive the bonus to be more closely tied than general wage increases. "
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