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Changes In Employment And Working Conditions Among Technical And Professional Workers, Rosemary Batt, Danielle Van Jaarsveld Jun 2013

Changes In Employment And Working Conditions Among Technical And Professional Workers, Rosemary Batt, Danielle Van Jaarsveld

Rosemary Batt

Recent organizing drives and strike activity among technical and professional employees raise the question of whether the employment conditions of these workers are deteriorating more generally. To consider this question, this paper reviews empirical research and national surveys on trends in employment contracts and working conditions of technical and professional employees. On average, we find that employment security and benefits have deteriorated, more pay is at risk, and hours of work have increased, negatively spilling over from work to family life.


Standing At A Crossroads: The Building Trades In The Twenty-First Century, Mark Erlich, Jeffrey Grabelsky Jan 2010

Standing At A Crossroads: The Building Trades In The Twenty-First Century, Mark Erlich, Jeffrey Grabelsky

Jeffrey Grabelsky

American building trades unions have historically played a critical and stabilizing role in the nation’s construction industry, establishing uniform standards and leveling the competitive playing field. Union members have enjoyed better than average wages and benefits, excellent training opportunities, and decent jobsite conditions. But in the last thirty years the industry has undergone a dramatic transformation. This article describes the decline in union density, the drop in construction wages, the growth of anti-union forces, the changes in labor force demographics, the shift toward construction management, and the emergence of an underground economy. It also analyzes how building trades unions have …