Was there power in a union? Consequences of union membership and working life factors in turn-of-the-last century Sweden

We study collective action and risk management in the Swedish manufacturing industry 1880-1930.

The project consists of three interrelated parts and deals with 1) why workers joined trade unions depending on who they were and where they worked, and by extension why some firms unionized more than others, 2) the impact of union membership on individuals’ income, careers, and health, and 3) whether firm-level unionization and investments in health and safety at work affected firms’ productivity, profitability, and survival.

We use high quality detailed micro data linking individuals and firms over time together with contextual information at the firm and regional level.

The result is a unique database at the national level, which includes both men and women, and the firms where they were employed.

We use economic theory and quantitative methods to explain the causes and consequences of collective action, issues that have not been studied before in a systematic way, for both men and women.

The project complements previous research with a new micro-perspective, helping us to understand relationships relevant to the well-being of individuals and firms, in the past and today.

Results will improve our understanding of whether collective action equalizes or reinforces differences in income and health between groups in the labor market.

This is of great importance for research and for society given declining unionization and increasing wage inequality across nations, including Sweden.