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The Determinants of Trade Union Membership in Britain: A Survey of the Literature

The Determinants of Trade Union Membership in Britain: A Survey of the Literature Trade union density, defined as the number of union members divided by the total number of workers, fell in Britain from 55% in 1979 to about 41% in 1989. (By comparison, the corresponding U.S. figures for those years are 23% and 16%.) Even before the decline began, British scholars and practitioners began focusing increasing attention on the determinants of union growth and decline. This literature review traces debate on the subject in Britain to the work of George Bain and his colleagues starting in the mid-1970s, and examines several key contributions of more recent years. The authors differentiate “structuralist” studies, which emphasize environmental determinants of union membership (such as the business cycle), from “interventionist” studies, which place more emphasis on the influence of unions themselves (through the involvement of full-time officials in recruiting, for example). http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png ILR Review SAGE

The Determinants of Trade Union Membership in Britain: A Survey of the Literature

Mason, Bob; Bain, Peter
ILR Review , Volume 46 (2): 20 – Jan 1, 1993
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References (39)

Publisher
SAGE
Copyright
© 1993 Cornell University
ISSN
0019-7939
eISSN
2162-271X
DOI
10.1177/001979399304600208
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Trade union density, defined as the number of union members divided by the total number of workers, fell in Britain from 55% in 1979 to about 41% in 1989. (By comparison, the corresponding U.S. figures for those years are 23% and 16%.) Even before the decline began, British scholars and practitioners began focusing increasing attention on the determinants of union growth and decline. This literature review traces debate on the subject in Britain to the work of George Bain and his colleagues starting in the mid-1970s, and examines several key contributions of more recent years. The authors differentiate “structuralist” studies, which emphasize environmental determinants of union membership (such as the business cycle), from “interventionist” studies, which place more emphasis on the influence of unions themselves (through the involvement of full-time officials in recruiting, for example).

Journal

ILR Review – SAGE

Published: Jan 1, 1993

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