Antitrust in Labor Markets : Comparative Study among Different Legal Traditions
Antitrust immunity for employees and unions seems to be a corny topic in the U.S. Although the Sherman Act in 1890 was once a tool to suppress labor organizations, exemptions were gradually granted in the following decades by several acts (e.g., the Clayton Act in 1914, and the Norris-LaGuardia Act in 1932). However, only employees can enjoy antitrust immunity, while labor and employment law divides workers into employees and independent contractors. The traditional distinction is facing challenges since the new gig economy requires a more flexible labor law. Feasible solutions may include creating a status between employees and independent contractors, adjusting the current labor and employment law, or providing special remedies for gig economy workers. Either path will affect workers’ antitrust immunity. Some people fantasize labor markets are perfectly competitive. So what will happen if an employer decreases employees’ wages by one cent? The above people may ridiculously reply that the rapid turnover of employees will keep the company’s automatic doors spinning. Even for classical liberals, it’s difficult to ignore employers’ monopsony. Adam Smith already noticed that “masters are always and everywhere in a sort of tacit, but constant and uniform, combination not to raise the wages of labor above their actual rate”. Today, workers still suffer from employers’ collusion, such as “Non-Poaching” or “Non-Recruit” agreements. In addition, some mergers may be so small in product markets that are ignored by antitrust authorities, but so big in labor markets that change the lives of many workers. For example, the merger of only two small coal mining in a certain location may not hit the minimum threshold of the product market, but the new company’s ability to restrict employee mobility and drive down wages may be significantly enhanced
Year of publication: |
[2023]
|
---|---|
Authors: | Wu, Yuntao |
Publisher: |
[S.l.] : SSRN |
Subject: | Kartellrecht | Antitrust law | Arbeitsmarkt | Labour market | EU-Staaten | EU countries | Vergleich | Comparison |
Saved in:
freely available
Extent: | 1 Online-Ressource (9 p) |
---|---|
Type of publication: | Book / Working Paper |
Language: | English |
Notes: | Nach Informationen von SSRN wurde die ursprüngliche Fassung des Dokuments March 11, 2023 erstellt |
Other identifiers: | 10.2139/ssrn.4462282 [DOI] |
Source: | ECONIS - Online Catalogue of the ZBW |
Persistent link: https://www.econbiz.de/10014347918
Saved in favorites
Similar items by subject
-
Das schweizerische, österreichische und das EG-Wettbewerbsrecht im Vergleich
Gugler, Philippe, (1998)
-
Caspary, Tobias, (2005)
-
Walter, Mareike, (2017)
- More ...