Labor union power ebbs and flows due to relationships with the state.  Be it local, regional, or national.  The 2024 Online Economic History Workshop solicited for papers on the interplay between government & politicians with labor unions that either strengthen or weaken labor unions. 

The 2024 Online Economic History Workshop is being done in partnership with ProMakret.org.

Getting Workers 'on board' with Automation: Evidence from Shipping Container Adoption

By: Jacob Greenspon, University of Oxford

Automation increases production but is controversial amongst workers whose jobs are threaten when implemented. Greenspon finds that dockworker employment does decrease in ports that adopt containers and in non-containerized ports competing with containerized ports. Despite the threat to employment, not all unionize ports in the United Sates resisted containerization.  While east coast  ports with higher union density resisted containerization, unions in the Pacific coast ports facilitated the adoption of containerization in exchange for compensatory payments.

Closing Ranks:

Organized Labor and Immigration

By: Carlo Medici, Brown University

Counties in the early 20th century United States with higher immigration experienced a higher probability of having a labor union, the number of union branchers, the share of unionized workers, and the number of union members per branch. The increase occurred more predominately among skilled workers in counties more exposed to labor competition from immigrants, and in areas with less favorable attitudes towards immigration.