What Do (Thousa nds of) Union Do? Union-Specific Pay Premia and Inequality (with Ellora Derenoncourt, François Gerard, and Claire Montialoux). August 2025. [Online appendix]
Abstract: We study the role of union heterogeneity in shaping wages and inequal ity among unionized workers. Using linked employer-employee data from Brazi l and job moves across multi-firm unions, we estimate over 4,800 union-spec ific pay premia. Unions explain 3–4% of earnings variation. While unions ra ise wages on average, the standard deviation in union effects is large (6-7 %). Validating our approach, wages fall in markets with higher vs. lower un ion premia following a nationwide right-to-work law. Linking premia to deta iled data on union attributes, we find that unions with strike activity, co llective bargaining agreements, internal competition, and skilled leaders s ecure higher wages. High-premium unions compress wage gaps by education whi le the average union exacerbates them. Post right-to-work, however, worker support for high-premium unions falls when between-group bargaining differe ntials are large. Our findings show that unions are not a monolith—their st ructure and actions shape their wage effects and, consequently, worker supp ort.
DTSTAMP:20260624T044758Z DTSTART:20260521T163000Z DTEND:20260521T180000Z SEQUENCE:0 TRANSP:OPAQUE END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR