Abstract
In the 2000s, the leadership of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) called for labor-management cooperation
from its rank and file members in response to concerns about increasing competition from the nonunionized electrical contracting
sector. The IBEW’s leadership implored members to cooperate by altering their behavior on the job, thereby modifying the effort
bargain between workers and management. To date, this type of cooperation with management has been little studied. Using qualitative
and quantitative data collected from one Local of the IBEW, this study analyzes how workers responded to the leadership’s
call and the factors guiding this behavior. Among the findings, cooperative behavior on the job is found to be strongly associated
with workers’ attitudes, as measured by their commitments to their occupation and to their union.
from its rank and file members in response to concerns about increasing competition from the nonunionized electrical contracting
sector. The IBEW’s leadership implored members to cooperate by altering their behavior on the job, thereby modifying the effort
bargain between workers and management. To date, this type of cooperation with management has been little studied. Using qualitative
and quantitative data collected from one Local of the IBEW, this study analyzes how workers responded to the leadership’s
call and the factors guiding this behavior. Among the findings, cooperative behavior on the job is found to be strongly associated
with workers’ attitudes, as measured by their commitments to their occupation and to their union.
- Content Type Journal Article
- Pages 1-26
- DOI 10.1007/s12122-012-9133-1
- Authors
- Deborah B. Balser, Business Administration and Public Policy Administration, University of Missouri-St. Louis, One University Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63121, USA
- Anne E. Winkler, Economics and Public Policy Administration, University of Missouri-St. Louis and IZA, One University Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63121, USA
- Journal Journal of Labor Research
- Online ISSN 1936-4768
- Print ISSN 0195-3613