It is not just about paying your dues: Impact of generational cohort on active and passive union participation

The lack of a validated measure of active–passive union participation and a dearth of research into the relationship between generational cohort and union participation challenge union leaders to develop policies and practices to facilitate union renewal. We address these issues by (a) developing a multidimensional measure of union participation that captures both active and passive components, (b) using structural equation modelling to validate the measure within a nomological framework, and (c) investigating the impact of generational cohort on all paths in our framework. Data from members of a large American union confirm that generational cohort influences how union members participate in their union. The two‐factor measure developed in this study facilitates research into antecedents and outcomes of passive and active union participation. Our findings should also prove useful to unions seeking to increase participation within their membership, academics researching unions and generational cohort, and human resource practitioners operating in unionised environments.     

The impact of wearable devices on employee wellness programs: A study of hotel industry workers

Hospitality workplaces are particularly challenging contexts in which to implement wellness initiatives. The present study implemented a technology-based wellness intervention to improve various aspects of employee wellness in contemporary hotel workplaces. The participants were given a wearable device (Fitbit, used here as an innovative tool) in order to monitor their activity levels and sleep patterns over a 14-day period. Additionally, the participants provided researchers with food diaries in separate electronic form. Information regarding job satisfaction, job engagement, organizational citizenship behaviors, and intention to leave was obtained before and after the observation period. The results demonstrate an increase in physical activity, an increase in healthy food consumption, and a reduction in overall caloric intake. Furthermore, positive changes in employee engagement, job satisfaction, and organizational commitment were noted. Care should be exercised when implementing such interventions in order to ensure data privacy and positive employee relations.     

Moderation by goal commitment of the feedback–performance relationship: Theoretical explanation and preliminary study

This paper presents goal commitment as one stage of a multidimensional goal striving process that affects feedback acquisition, processing, and use during the achievement of performance goals. Specifically, this paper argues that higher goal commitment leads to more effective acquisition, processing, and use of feedback that in turn fosters higher performance than does lower goal commitment. To provide a preliminary test of this proposition, data from an earlier field study conducted by the author and colleagues [J. Occup. Organ. Psychol. 72 (1999) 107] were used to examine the moderating effects of goal commitment on the relationship between perceived task feedback amount and work performance of 196 rehabilitation counselors. Results were consistent with this proposed interaction, as perceived task feedback amount had a positive linear relationship with work performance for higher goal commitment rehabilitation counselors and a negative linear relationship with performance for lower goal commitment counselors. The discussion urges researchers to broaden their views of goal commitment beyond the goal difficulty–performance relationship and to devote more attention to moderators of the feedback–performance relationship. Directions for future research and practical implications are also discussed.     

Resistance to Trade Liberalization in Unionized Sector

This paper studies the lobbying against trade liberalization by both a firm and a union in the same industry. We find that the relationship between their political activities depends on the effect of political activity by one on the marginal effectiveness of political activity by the other. We also show that, when they are strongly risk-averse and their political activities are strategic complements, trade liberalization is likely to be successful if business is brisk, the foreign firm's production cost is high or the number of union members is small. However, when they are not strongly risk-averse, these results hold reversely.     

Is the Optimal Labor Income Tax Progressive in a Unionized Economy?*

This paper concerns optimal nonlinear labor income taxation in an economy with union wage setting and endogenous hours of work. The purpose is to study the determinants of tax progression. We show that the optimal degree of progression of the labor income tax depends on the extent to which the government can influence the wage rate via tax policy as well as on its ability to redistribute income across individuals. In addition, the argument for progressive labor income taxation depends on whether hours of work are chosen by the employed themselves or the union.     

Monetary union and the Maastricht inflation criterion: The accession countries*

We model an accession country facing a Maastricht‐type inflation criterion that specifies an inflation ceiling. In addition to deciding whether or not to satisfy this criterion, the country must decide how much costly economic reform to undertake. If the country puts enough weight on the future that it can credibly meet the inflation criterion no matter what the ceiling is, then the inflation criterion benefits the country but lowers reform. If the country puts less weight on the future, then a criterion with a properly chosen inflation ceiling can increase reform. We derive the inflation ceilings that maximize the country's welfare and its reform.     

反倾销应诉的集体行动研究——行业协会克服"搭便车"机制的思考

本文针时我国企业在反倾销共同应诉中的不合作或者“搭使车”问题，试图探讨行业协会作为一种治理机制，如何提供或设计一种有效的制度安排（如俱乐部规范），把一群相互依存的企业组织起来，并通过自主性努力克服不合作或“搭便车”，以取得长期的共同利益的实现。     

Rethinking the role of NCBs in the EMU

Five years after the introduction of unified monetary policy in the EMU, some member countries are wondering whether they have ceded too much of their policy-making powers. The fact that National Central Banks no longer carry out sizable expansionary open market or foreign exchange market operations suggests that they face substantially reduced abilities to set economic policy.This paper demonstrates that, in fact, very little power has been yielded: on the fiscal front, the force of such policy initiatives is enhanced by the fixity of the exchange rate. On the monetary front, we show that there is an observational equivalence between all Central Bank actions under fixed exchange rates. This implies that the authorities retain the same amount of policy flexibility as before. So long as they use an alternative form of policy initiative, carrying out what previously would have been characterized as sterilized foreign exchange market operations, their ability to influence the macro performance of their economy is undiminished.     

决策者人格特征对承诺升级的影响研究

为研究决策者人格特征是否导致承诺升级现象及其产生的因素,研究者以中国文化背景的管理者为被试,运用T检验及回归分析法,证实了决策者自尊、冒险倾向、挫折容忍力、控制点等人格变量与承诺升级行为之间存在相关关系的假设,验证并扩充了西方承诺升级研究理论,为企业甄选管理决策人员实践提供了理论指导。     

The voice of the loyal manager: Distinguishing attachment from commitment

The purpose of this article is to use Albert Hirschman's Exit, Voice, and Loyalty framework to analyze the extent to which corporate employees are merely attached to the firm rather than committed. A model of managerial loyalty is developed where loyalty is defined as the percentage pay increase that an employee would require to leave the current firm for alternative employment. Independent variables in the model include barriers to exit and voice. This model was tested on three data sets from North American airlines. This model received empirical support during a stable environment but was not strongly supported during a more turbulent environment. Implications of the results are discussed.