The class dynamics of income shares: effects of the declining power of unions in the US airline industry, 1977–2005. (23rd November 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Avent-Holt, Dustin
• Is Part Of: Socio-economic review. Volume 17:Number 3(2019:Jul.)
• Page Start: 603
• Page End: 625
• Publication Date: 2017-11-23
• Subjects: class -- neoliberalism -- trade unions -- inequality; J51 trade unions: objectives -- structure -- and effects -- J53 labor-management relations -- industrial jurisprudence -- J31 wage level and structure -- wage differentials; Economics -- Sociological aspects -- Periodicals; 306.305
• DOI: 10.1093/ser/mwx048
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1475-1461

Abstract

Abstract: Although class relations are situated within workplaces, research on class income shares has neither examined firm-level mechanisms nor distinguished between managerial and non-managerial workers within the class of labor. This article analyzes the effects of union power on the distribution of shares of income between capital, top managers, and non-managerial workers at the firm-level during the neoliberal era. Using data on US airlines from 1977 to 2005 I find that strikes are central to shaping the firm-level distribution of income shares, but in an unexpected way. Strikes redistribute income away from non-managerial workers, without affecting either profit or top managerial income shares. These results suggest that analyses of income distribution across classes must incorporate a more detailed class schema as well as observe effects of deunionization at the firm level. Moreover, the findings provide further evidence that firm-level mechanisms are shaped by the institutional context in which firms operate.