Collective Bargaining and Contract Administration: Present and Future.
This paper will show that, while collective bargaining, and indeed organized labor at large, is being challenged, the demise of unionization is by no means a foregone conclusion. On the one hand, it is clear that the ongoing decline of importance in industrial sectors of the economy will continue to curtail union membership. The shift to a service based economy has induced vast declines in union memberships already, and will likely see them further decline in the future. On the other hand, authors have found the influence of globalization and economic restructuring on organized labor have been overstated and oversimplified. Thus in the end, the end of organized labor is not a foregone conclusion. The paper concludes with the idea that, if it is to survive or indeed experience a revival, collective bargaining and organized labor need to focus more on generating skills, fostering internal solidarity, and improving contract enforcement before their power will be returned. 11 pgs. 16 f/c. 7b.
