Unionization and the Evolution of the Wage Distribution in Sweden: 1968 to 2000
نویسنده
چکیده
The final third of the twentieth century represents an important episode in Swedish labor market history. Over that period, the pattern of unionization and the wage distribution co-evolved in interesting ways. From 1968-1983 the unionization rate increased sharply in Sweden, and unions gained more power to influence the wage distribution. These years were characterized by “solidarity wage bargaining,” in which a pattern of centralized negotiations allowed unions to exert pressure to raise the relative wages of the least well paid. This was a period of strong wage compression. However, starting in 1983, the system of centralized bargaining started to fall apart. The fraction of workers covered by the Central Confederation of Blue-Collar Unions (LO), which had been the driving force behind solidarity wage bargaining, fell. The fraction of workers covered by the umbrella confederations representing white-collar workers (TCO and SACO) increased, as did the fraction of nonunion workers. From 1983-2000, the wage distribution in Sweden began to spread out again.
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