PSI current research

The Future of Trade Unions in Modern Britain

Project Leader: Alex Bryson

Sponsor: Leverhulme Foundation

Period: April 2001-December 2002

Background
The Leverhulme Foundation has funded a programme of research on 'The Future of Trade Unions in Modern Britain', based at the Centre for Economic Performance at the London School of Economics. This study funded Alex Bryson as a Research Associate at the CEP to work on this research programme. His research, in collaboration with researchers at the CEP and elsewhere, covers: the demand for union membership in Britain; the relationship between union membership and job satisfaction; unions and perceptions of job security; the impact of unions on company performance; and the impact of unions on wages.

Study Design
A number of projects based on secondary analyses of existing data sets, notably the Workplace Employee Relations Survey 1998 (WERS 98), the British Worker Representation and Participation Survey and the British Social Attitudes Surveys (BSA) 1983-2001.

Importance
The Leverhulme Foundation's programme will be the definitive study informing academic and policy debate about the evolution of trade unionism and the impact of unions on the world of work.

Publications
Willman, P., Bryson, A. and Gomez, R. (2003) 'Why Do Voice Regimes Differ?', Centre for Economic Performance mimeo, London School of Economics
Bryson, A. and Gomez, G. (2003) 'Buying Into Union Membership', in Gospel, H. and Wood, S. (eds.), The Future of Trade Unions in Modern Britain, Vol. 1, Routledge, London

Bryson, A. (2002) The Size of the Union Membership Wage Premium in Britain's Private Sector, PSI Discussion Paper No. 9, PSI Report No. 886

Bryson, A. and Gomez, G. (2002) 'Marching on together? Recent trends in union membership' in Park, A., Curtice, J., Thomson, K., Jarvis, L. and Bromley, C. (eds) British Social Attitudes: the 19th Report, London: Sage.

Bryson, A. and Gomez, G. (2002) Why Have People Stopped Joining Unions?, Centre for Economic Performance Working Paper No. 1184, London School of Economics

Bryson, A. (2002) The Union Membership Wage Premium: An Analysis Using Propensity Score Matching, Centre for Economic Performance Discussion Paper No. 530, London School of Economics

Bryson, A., Cappellari, L. and Lucifora, C. (2002) Why So Unhappy? The Effect of Union Membership on Job Satisfaction, Centre for Economic Performance Working Paper No. 1183, London School of Economics

Bryson, A. and Gomez, G. (2002) You Can't Always Get What You Want: Frustrated Demand for Union Membership and Representation in Britain, Centre for Economic Performance Working Paper No. 1182, London School of Economics

Bryson, A., Gomez, R., Gunderson, M., and Meltz, N. (2001) Youth-Adult Differences in the Demand for Unionization: Are American, British and Canadian Workers All That Different?, Centre for Economic Performance Discussion Paper No. 515, London School of Economics

Bryson, A. (2001) Union Effects On Managerial and Employee Perceptions of Employee Relations in Britain, Centre for Economic Performance Discussion Paper No. 494, London School of Economics