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Labour Unions and Firm Productivity: Evidence from China
Author(s) -
Yang ChihHai,
Tsou MengWen
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
the manchester school
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.361
H-Index - 42
eISSN - 1467-9957
pISSN - 1463-6786
DOI - 10.1111/manc.12225
Subject(s) - productivity , propensity score matching , china , matching (statistics) , panel data , labour economics , economics , total factor productivity , demographic economics , econometrics , macroeconomics , statistics , mathematics , political science , law
This study investigates the effect of labour unions on productivity across various types of firm ownership in China. Using a panel dataset of Chinese manufacturing firms covering 2004–2007 and employing propensity score matching techniques, we find that unions have a negative impact on labour productivity and total factor productivity. From a dynamic viewpoint, unionisation has an initially positive or nonsignificant association with productivity, but then has a significant negative effect in subsequent years for both foreign‐owned enterprises and private firms. A strong and negative productivity effect is consistently observed for state‐owned enterprises.