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Job Satisfaction and Trade Union Membership in Germany

Author

Listed:
  • Laszlo Goerke
  • Yue Huang
Abstract
Using panel data from 1985 to 2019, we provide the first comprehensive investigation of the relationship between trade union membership and job satisfaction in Germany. Cross-sectional analyses reveal a negative correlation, while fixed effects estimates indicate an insignificant relationship. This is also true if we incorporate information on collective bargaining coverage or the existence of works councils in subsamples for which this data is available. To address the endogeneity of union membership, we generate information on the union density individuals faced in their industry and region. This time-variant IV suggests no causal impact of individual union membership on job satisfaction. Finally, using different estimation models, we investigate whether the effects vary by gender, age, birth year, and employment status.

Suggested Citation

  • Laszlo Goerke & Yue Huang, 2022. "Job Satisfaction and Trade Union Membership in Germany," CESifo Working Paper Series 9868, CESifo.
    • Handle: RePEc:ces:ceswps:_9868
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    exit-voice framework; German socio-economic panel; instrumental variable; job satisfaction; sorting; trade union membership;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I31 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty - - - General Welfare, Well-Being
    • J28 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Safety; Job Satisfaction; Related Public Policy
    • J51 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor-Management Relations, Trade Unions, and Collective Bargaining - - - Trade Unions: Objectives, Structure, and Effects

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