进口竞争对工会化的影响

中文摘要

本文研究1990年至2014年间中国进口竞争对美国工会会员身份的直接和间接影响。制造业中的进口竞争导致制造业行业内部的工会化程度小幅下降，其幅度较小，是因为已建立工会的制造商在质量更高的产品细分市场中竞争。位于工作权州的制造商面临来自低质量中国进口产品更为直接的竞争。然而，在制造业之外，进口竞争导致工会会员人数显著增加，因为受教育程度较低的女性从零售业转向工会力量更强的医疗卫生和教育行业就业。我们测算表明，中国进口阻止了原本会发生的工会密度降幅中的26%。（JEL F14、F16、J16、J51、L60、P33）

Abstract

We study direct and indirect effects of Chinese import competition on union membership in the United States, 1990–2014. Import competition in manufacturing induced a modest decline in unionization within manufacturing industries. The magnitude is small because unionized manufacturers competed in higher-quality product segments. Manufacturers in right-to-work states experienced more direct competition with low-quality Chinese imports. Outside of manufacturing, however, import competition causes an important increase in union membership, as less educated women shift away from retail and toward jobs in health care and education where unions are stronger. We calculate that Chinese imports prevented 26 percent of the union density decline that would have otherwise occurred. (JEL F14, F16, J16, J51, L60, P33)