This paper examines the effect of unions on both the magnitude and distribution of pension benefits. An analysis of experience during 1973-79 under a sample of defined benefit plans shows that beneficiaries retire at an earlier age under collectively bargained plans than under other plans,...

To help workers navigate the transition from work to retirement more effectively, employers have been launching phased retirement programs, which allow older employees to work part-time and receive full retirement benefits. This paper examines the experience of the phased retirement system for...

The author documents and analyzes changes in wage structure across manufacturing industries over the years 1890-1990. Interindustry differentials in wages were highly stable over that period for production workers, but much less stable for nonproduction workers. Interindustry wage patterns were...

This paper examines the forces behind the decline in the union share of construction employment from almost one-half in 1966 to less than one-third in 1983. The percentage of construction workers employed by union contractors has declined even further because the fraction of union members...

This paper develops an economic model of absenteeism and tests that model with data from a sample of establishments in the paper industry. Absenteeism is viewed as a desirable nonpecuniary element of the compensation package. The model, which is based upon the hedonic framework developed by...

This paper examines the effect of union membership on absenteeism. On the one hand, union members might be absent more frequently than nonmembers because they face smaller penalties for absenteeism and because managers in union plants have less flexibility to tailor work schedules to individual...

This study examines the difference in productivity between union and nonunion contractors in the construction industry within two samples, one of 83 commercial office buildings completed in 1973-74 and the other of 68 elementary and secondary schools completed in 1972. An analysis that includes...

Using data from the Japanese Basic Survey on Wage Structure for 1981 and 1986, the authors estimate the effect of the age of mandatory retirement on the rate of growth of earnings with job tenure in Japan. The results indicate that an increase in the age of mandatory retirement reduces the rate...