ECIN Replication Package for "Productivity Dynamics Among Union Locals in the United States"

Principal Investigator(s): View help for Principal Investigator(s) Thomas Breda, Paris School of Economics; Alex Bryson, University College London; John Forth, City St Georges, University of London

Version: View help for Version V2

Name	File Type	Size	Last Modified
Data			11/10/2025 04:29:PM
Programs			11/10/2025 04:32:PM
README_2.pdf	application/pdf	313.1 KB	11/10/2025 11:29:AM

Project Citation:

Breda, Thomas, Bryson, Alex, and Forth, John. ECIN Replication Package for “Productivity Dynamics Among Union Locals in the United States.” Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor], 2025-11-10. https://doi.org/10.3886/E237662V2

Project Description

Summary: The study is primarily based on the analysis of panel data for union locals in the United States. The data derive from the Labor Organization Reporting System (LORS) and are provided by the Office of Labor Management Standards (OLMS).

Using the LORS data, we examine the dynamics of the union sector in the US, investigating the impact of inter-union competition on locals’ productivity and survival. We find low entry rates, high exit rates and high levels of productivity dispersion in the sector. The entry of new locals is not associated with productivity improvements among incumbents but has a small negative impact on locals’ survival rates. These findings indicate that inter-union competition is not effective in raising productivity and the effects of creative destruction are weak, with these processes likely insufficient to stem the sector’s overall decline.

Funding Sources: British Academy - Newton Fund

Scope of Project

Subject Terms: organisational dynamics; competition; productivity; trade unions; survival

JEL Classification:
      J51 Trade Unions: Objectives, Structure, and Effects
      L11 Production, Pricing, and Market Structure; Size Distribution of Firms
      L22 Firm Organization and Market Structure
      L31 Nonprofit Institutions; NGOs; Social Entrepreneurship

Manuscript Number: ECIN-Mar-2024-0114

Geographic Coverage: United States

Time Period(s): 2000 – 2022

Collection Date(s): 2000 – 2022

Universe: Locals (individual branches) of trade unions representing private sector employees, federal employees or postal employees. Labor organizations representing only state or local government employees are not included.

Data Type(s): administrative records data

Methodology

Response Rate: Not applicable - administrative data

Sampling: Not applicable - administrative data

Data Source: The data derive from the Labor Organization Reporting System (LORS), 2000-2022. They were obtained from the US Office of Labor Management Standards.

Collection Mode(s): other

Scales: None

Weights: None

Unit(s) of Observation: Union locals

Geographic Unit: ZIP code

Related Publications

Download this project

Published Versions

V2 [2025-11-10]

V1 [2025-10-03]

Export Metadata

Dublin Core

DDI 2.5

Report a Problem

Found a serious problem with the data, such as disclosure risk or copyrighted content? Let us know.

This material is distributed exactly as received from the data depositor. As of April 2026, depositors are required to submit study materials in accessible formats. ICPSR has not reviewed, checked, or processed this material. For additional information about the study, please contact the investigator(s) directly. If you have questions about the accessibility of materials distributed by ICPSR or require further assistance, please visit ICPSR's Accessibility Center.