Susan Schwochau

Union Effects on Job Attitudes

This paper examines differences in the reported job satisfaction of union members and nonmembers using a multiple equation model that treats union membership, wage rates, and reported satisfaction as endogenously determined. The results indicate that union members differ from nonmembers in how they assess their satisfaction with supervision, co-workers, and job content. Consistent with prior research, union members are found to report lower levels of satisfaction than nonmembers. Although many studies have attributed such findings to the availability of the “voice” option in unionized settings, analyses of the effects of employer tenure and grievance procedure use lend only partial support to the “exit-voice” hypothesis.

Unionism and voter turnout

Conventional wisdom suggests that union members and their families are more politically active, and more likely to vote, than nonmembers. This study presents, to our knowledge, the first systematic empirical examination of that conventional wisdom. Results suggest that union members are more likely than nonmembers to vote in a general election, and that union campaign efforts increase voter turnout generally. There is no evidence, however, that union family members are more likely to vote than nonmembers, or that union status affects an individual’s likelihood of voting in a primary election.

Economics of the Americans with Disabilities Act, Part III: Does the ADA Disable the Disabled

The headline reads “Dubious Aid for the Disabled,” and the attached story speaks of evidence that the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) has led to reductions, rather than the anticipated increases, in the employment of individuals with disabilities. Can the results be believed? Some evidence suggests yes. The National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research recently reported, for example, that the ADA has not led to an improvement of employment conditions to disabled persons generally. The findings from the latest National Organization on Disability/Louis Harris poll suggest that the percentage of disabled individuals who are employed has declined since its surveys in 1994 and 1986. Numerous others have noted that the law is not yielding the outcomes expected by its drafters.

Does the ADA Disable the Disabled?— More Comments

This article examines how best to identify individuals with disabilities for analysis of the impact of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990. It also explores whether amending the ADA to broaden its definition of disability can be expected to improve the employment prospects of those who seek its protections. Answering these questions requires that we learn much more about the labor force participation decisions of those with disabilities. Our aim here is to encourage further consideration and analysis of these and related questions regarding the possible effects of the ADA and of other environmental factors that affect the labor force participation of those with disabilities.

Interest Group Tactics and Public Sector Labor Relations Policy

A framework for analyzing the determinants of state labor relations policies is developed using the notion of tactics. Unions and management have various tactical options, at both the state and local levels, for influencing employment outcomes. The framework explicitly recognizes those options, and thus incorporates actions, such as bringing cases to courts, which have received little attention in previous research. Consideration of local-level tactics reveals additional factors that may influence interest group incentives to seek state-level policy changes.