To merge or not to merge? The impact of union merger decisions on workers' representation in Germany

Union mergers have been widely studied in a variety of countries; however, little is known about their impact on union effectiveness. This article draws on in‐depth interviews with officials and works councillors from four German unions, as well as on a representative survey of German works councils, to analyse how a union's merger status shapes its effectiveness in three spheres of activity: political lobbying, collective bargaining and establishment‐level interest representation. We compare two cases of merger with two cases of continued organisational independence, finding that merger outcomes for individual unions vary considerably across our three union functions.     

Union Mergers: The New Interest and Some Old Questions

When the merged union UNITE HERE was recently torn apart by internal dissent, the labor movement’s attention turned to some longstanding questions about how union mergers are negotiated, why some fail and others succeed, how members are affected by merger, and how the big, diverse unions created by mergers—the super-unions—manage to stay intact. This article addresses these questions, arguing throughout that little is actually known about the union merger process and outcomes. In doing so, it also suggests that some union mergers, such as the one forming UNITE HERE, may not always make sense and that bigger unions created by mergers are not necessarily better unions.     

Measuring mergers and concentration in UK unions 1910–88

Trade union mergers are currently attracting much attention. This is in the context of the continuing decline of trade unions and the role of mergers in maintaining their viability. However, a still neglected and important aspect of their development is how to measure with accuracy, the concentration which results from mergers.     

The trade union merger process in Europe: defensive adjustment or strategic reform?

In most Member States of the European Union, trade unionists are reforming trade union structures through engagement in the merger process. This article charts the scale of the merger process since 2000 and identifies the key features of the unions that result from it. The article assesses the outcome of the merger process by reference to aspects of trade union purpose. While much of the merger process is shown to be defensive, particular mergers are highlighted as comprising features that may assist in the renewal of trade union organisation.     

Union Mergers; Some Questions Raised by a “Disorderly Breakup”

This essay discusses the 2004 merger between UNITE, a clothing workers’ union, and HERE, the hotel and restaurant workers union. Many labor scholars and union proponents believed that this merger would revive a dormant US labor movement and lead to great success in union organizing. Although much was expected, there was very little accomplished by this merger. While union mergers can either be amalgamations or absorptions, the UNITE-HERE merger took the former form. Although successful amalgamations usually occur when the two unions share a common jurisdiction, additional problems occur when the unions are dissimilar in size and type of members. The UNITE-HERE merger displayed none of these three above-mentioned characteristics. This essay also discusses issues of the centralization/decentralization of union mergers, the negotiation and promotion of such combinations, local union and national union mergers while concluding with a discussion of whether union mergers are an appropriate strategy for dealing with a struggling US labor movement early in the twenty-first century.     

The British merger movement: the importance of the ‘aggressive’ unions

Union mergers in Britain are dominated numerically by transfers of engagements from minor unions to major unions. Just five major or acquiring unions were responsible for absorbing 79% of all transfers to TUC affiliated unions between 1978 and 1994. This study establishes the extent of this domination, examines the characteristics of the five unions’ aggressive merger policies and considers the consequences of the findings for theories of union mergers.     

Unions and restructuring in the Mexican automobile industry: a comparative assessment

This article examines the variation in union responses to restructuring initiatives in the Mexican automobile industry. The research indicates that militant responses were more likely to occur in unions characterised by internal democracy and autonomy from Mexico's state-corporatist labour confederations.     

Obstacles to transnational trade union cooperation in Europe—results from a European survey

This article analyses obstacles to transnational union cooperation within Europe. It is based on a survey of unions in 14 European countries and all members of the European Trade Union Confederation. The result shows that ‘hard’ industrial relations factors are generally more important obstacles to transnational cooperation than ‘softer’ factors such as cultural, linguistic, ideological and religious differences and that there are sectoral differences in experiences of obstacles to transnational union cooperation: unions in the manufacturing sector tend to emphasise differences in industrial relations and a lack of organisational resources for transnational union cooperation, whereas low organisational priorities are held to be of more importance in the services sector and for unions for professional workers.     

A role for a pan-European trade union movement?–possibilities in European IR-regulation

Steps towards internationalisation of the trade union movement are considered in the context of the process of political and economic integration taking place in the EU. The trade unions are trying–partly via the ETUC–to play a role at pan-European level. However, the European trade union movement is not a cohesive entity. Besides, it has no significant transnational power-resources. These factors suggest that any European IR-system will be based primarily on political regulation rather than on a system of collective agreements.     

Union Revitalization: How Women and Men Officers See the Relationship Between Union Size and Union Tolerance for Sexual Harassment

Larger memberships resulting from union mergers and consolidations have heightened the issue of union responsiveness to economic and noneconomic needs of members. In this study, we focused on a gender-moderated relationship between union size and perceived union tolerance for sexual harassment, in which low perceived tolerance (a desirable outcome) was anticipated as a noneconomic need relevant to union women. Data were collected from women and men officers (N?=?120) in various unions. Officers were viewed as well-positioned informants on tolerance in relation to union policies and practices. As hypothesized, the data confirmed that women in larger unions rated tolerance significantly higher (an undesirable outcome) than women in smaller unions. No such tolerance variation was found for men in relation to smaller and larger unions. Implications for union revitalization and future research on union size are discussed.     

A Strategic Choice–resource Dependence Analysis of Union Mergers in the British and Australian Broadcasting and Film Industries

Since the late 1980s there has been a marked increase in the rate of union restructuring and merger in both Britain and Australia. This has been particularly prevalent in the film and broadcasting industries in both countries. This organizational change has largely been triggered by environmental turbulence which has altered the availability and control of resources required for organizational survival. Accepting the concept from strategic choice theory that trade unions are able to exercise a degree of choice over the way in which they manage and adapt to changes in their external and internal environments, the paper demonstrates how an integration of strategic choice and resource dependence perspectives can explain why organizations behave in different ways and, in particular, why trade union mergers in the film and broadcasting industries have occurred. Further, the perspective also explains why some trade unions chose not to merge. An integration of resource dependence theory with strategic choice theory explains why trade unions make particular strategic decisions. Conversely, strategic choice explains how organizations acquire resources and manage dependencies. The paper concludes by making the case for an integration of the two perspectives for future studies of organizational behaviour and change.     

Do European trade unions foster social solidarity? Evidence from multilevel data in 18 countries

Trade unions have been analysed quantitatively primarily in their role as vested interest organisations, attempting to quantify the excludable benefits they provide to members rather than examine their wider impact in an institutional context. Power resource theory acknowledges unions as social agents but assumes the willingness to oppose neoliberalism is constant, limited only by scarce power resources. Whilst true in general terms, this fails to explain trends of increasing labour market dualism in resource‐rich industrial relations regimes. This article examines social solidarity as a union power resource, measuring the impact of trade union membership on social attitudes of solidarity. Data were collected from the 2016 European Social Survey for 18 countries, grouped into five distinct industrial relations regimes. The findings suggest that, at European level, union membership still has a significant effect on all dimensions of social solidarity, but these relationships vary significantly across industrial relations regimes.     

Trade union membership trends in seven Western European countries 1950—1968

Post-War trade union membership developments have received relatively little academic attention, in view of the importance attributed to trades union organization in the collective bargaining system, in the social, political and economic fields, in the relationships between organized labour and governments and, in particular, in the efforts to devise institutional arrangements suitable for dealing with wage-price inflation. Union membership levels, the effective power of central federations and some of their individual affiliates, shifts in membership and the often concomitant changes in the political status of a union or unions and the degree of organization of a nation's labour force—are all important aspects of the potential role of trade union movements within the socio-economic and political life of a nation. The objects of this paper are to examine membership levels and changes, density of organization, membership concentration and the membership experiences of the six largest unions within the trades union movements of Austria, Denmark, Germany (Federal Republic), Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom over the postwar period.     

Collective and individual benefits of trade unions: a multi‐level analysis of 21 European countries

In light of internationally declining union density, this article examines to what extent employees derive advantage from trade unions. Data collected in 21 countries through the European Social Survey 2010 are being used. Multilevel analyses show that it is not so much individual membership but unions' collective power that matters. Perceived union influence and a union‐friendly industrial relations regime (mainly the organized corporatism in the Nordic countries) are positively linked to the occurrence of regular workplace meetings and to the impact of these meetings on organizational decisions. Employees also appear to benefit from unions' collective power in terms of appropriate pay and job security, although the regime pattern is then less clear.     

Political Unionism and Autonomy in Economies of British Colonial Origin: The Cases of Jamaica and Trinidad

A bstract . This investigation has shown that in developing countries an inconsistency arises between the need for more equitable distribution of income and wealth between classes and groups and the goals of an industrial relations system in which the trade unions are committed to 'political unionism.' While the unions helped to achieve independence and thus economic growth , in Jamaica the country moved into independence with a legacy of hardship and conflict, and of bad labor-management relations. Legitimate union demands were suppressed, producing a situation in which latent conflict became manifest. This became a permanent feature; the unions are encouraged to become militant political organizations which in Trinidad were alienated from the formal political structure. The type of unions and industrial relations systems that emerged after independence proved unsuitable and undesirable for achieving sustained rapid rates of economic growth, making reform of the labor relations system and the electoral process mandatory.     

Union responses in electronics: a globalised environment

This article examines union responses to a hostile environment in the electronics sector in four European countries. All unions saw the need for change, but those with the greatest need to develop strategic responses were not those which were in the best position to do so.     

Union‐division: on the paradoxes of purpose and membership scope in union mergers

Union mergers raise central questions about a union's raison d'être and the range of constituents it can serve effectively. Whereas the challenges posed by union purpose and scope of membership have long engaged researchers, few studies have fleshed out the contradictory issues that engage committed members and leaders during a merger. We argue that in mergers, fundamental themes in unionism intersect in paradoxical ways. We analyse a merger of tertiary education unions in New Zealand and situate its debates within a changing context for industrial relations. The case provides insight into the tensions inherent in union mergers by addressing the drivers for integration and differentiation as well as the role of leaders in shaping these. The findings elucidate paradoxical dynamics inherent in mergers: the paradox of purpose confronts the tension between industrial and craft unionism and the paradox of membership scope considers critical mass and communities of interest. The conclusion reflects on identity, leadership and context during mergers and poses contributions to research and practice.     

Union density and determinants of union membership in 18 EU countries: evidence from micro data, 2002/031

Using representative individual-level data from the first round of the European Social Survey fielded in 2002/03, this article provides an empirical analysis of unionisation in 18 countries of the EU. We show that union density varies considerably in Europe, ranging from 84 per cent in Denmark to 11 per cent in Portugal. Estimating identical models for each country, we find that individuals’ probability of union membership is significantly affected by their personal characteristics, their attitudes and the characteristics of their workplace, whereas social factors seem to play a minor role. The presence of a union at the workplace and employees’ attitudes concerning strong unions are the two variables most strongly associated with unionisation.     

Embedded collectivism? Workplace representation in France and Germany

In most countries of Western Europe it makes little sense to speak of non‐union employee representation, as this is understood in the Anglo‐American world, for the principle of collective representation independent of the employer is strongly institutionalised. In this article we examine experience in two countries. In Germany, works councils with a wide repertoire of rights typically work in close partnership with trade unions. The system has experienced strains in recent years, and a growing proportion of mainly smaller workplaces are covered neither by councils nor by collective agreements; but there is virtually no evidence of alternative ‘voice’ mechanisms, and systems of direct participation are normally introduced by negotiation with councils. In France, works committees have fewer powers, and a divided trade union movement has been less successful than its German counterpart in ‘embedding’ the legally mandated institutions, at least in the private sector. Despite some common trends in both countries, national distinctiveness remains very apparent. There is growing scope for managerial strategic choice, but this is still institutionally bounded. Much more generally, countries displaying characteristics of a ‘European social model’ can be expected to sustain a close articulation between union and ‘non‐union’ channels of representation.     

Just vote no! Union–busting in the European fast–food industry: the case of McDonald’s

This paper examines the problem of effectively regulating the labour relations practices of multinational corporations. It focuses on the activities of the McDonald’s Corporation in a number of European countries. The findings suggest that public and private codes of conduct have a very limited effect and that determined and well–resourced corporations can not only undermine regional forms of regulation—such as that provided by the European Union—but also, and to a considerable extent, national–level regulation. This is particularly evident in the area of independent trade union representation. Although its aim of avoiding collective bargaining and union recognition wherever possible is only partially successful, McDonald’s appears to have developed a number of highly effective strategies for limiting the presence of trade unions at restaurant level, particularly in avoiding or undermining statutory works councils and union representation rights.