Jake Rosenfeld

Examines whether the dissemination of organizational financial information shifts power dynamics within workplaces, finding that employees whose managers share financial information earn about 8 to 12 percent more than employees whose managers keep such information secret.

Utilizes the 2004 and 2011 series of the British Workplace Employment Relations Survey (WERS) to test whether employees who report that their managers disclose workplace financial data earn more than otherwise similar workers not privy to such information. Suggests that disclosure results in higher wages for workers after adjusting for profit and productivity levels and a range of other workplace and worker characteristics.  Argues that disclosure is a key resource that reduces information asymmetries, thereby providing legitimacy to workers’ claims in wage bargaining.

Lays bare the broad repercussions of labor's collapse for the American economy and polity.

Describes the causes of organized labor's collapse in the U.S., and analyzes some of the major consequences of labor's decline for middle class Americans. Offers some plausible pathways for unions to respond to the challenges of the 21st Century.

Examines the effect of labor union decline on economic inequality between African-Americans and whites. Finds that organized labor was vital in supporting African-American wages, and in reducing black-white wage gaps – especially among female workers.

Provides a comprehensive investigation into union decline’s impact on wage inequality in the U.S. Finds that declining union membership explains a third of the recent rise in men’s wage inequality in the private sector – roughly equal to the impact of the growing wage gap between college and high school-educated workers.

Investigates how the changing composition of the labor movement affects who turns out to vote on election day. Finds that the effect of belonging to a union on voting is strongest for low-educated private sector workers – precisely the type of person fast disappearing from unions.

Questions whether the recent, well-publicized unionization campaigns of Hispanics and Hispanic immigrants have helped revitalize the labor movement. We find that certain Hispanic subpopulations are more likely to belong to unions than non-immigrant whites. However, all populations’ unionization propensities have dropped precipitously in recent decades.