Workplace Employee Representation and Industrial Relations Performance: New Evidence from the 2013 European Company Survey

John Addison and Paulino Teixeira

No 10899, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: Using cross-country data from the European Company Survey, we investigate the relationship between workplace employee representation and five behavioral outcomes: strike incidence, the climate of industrial relations, sickness/absenteeism, employee motivation, and staff retention. The evidence is mixed. From one perspective, the expression of collective voice through works councils may be construed as largely beneficial. However, any such optimistic evaluation is heavily qualified by union organization and in particular workplace unionism. Establishment union density seemingly blunts the performance of employee workplace representation, elevating dissatisfaction at the expense of collaboration.

Keywords: employee motivation and retention; industrial relations quality; strikes; collective bargaining; union agency; works councils; employee representation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J51 J52 J53 J83 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 39 pages
Date: 2017-07
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-eur, nep-hrm, nep-lab and nep-ltv
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

Published - published in: Jahrbuecher fuer Nationaloekonomie und Statistik (Journal of Economics and Statistics), 2019, 239 (1), 111-154

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Journal Article: Workplace Employee Representation and Industrial Relations Performance: New Evidence from the 2013 European Company Survey (2019)
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