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The political effects of grievance handling by stewards in a local union

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Abstract

This study develops and tests three long-standing propositions about the relationship between grievance-handling behavior and political outcomes in a local union: (1) more favorable grievance handling enhances the steward’s likelihood of re-election; (2) the more the political support obtained in an election, the greater the steward’s ability to affect grievance outcomes favorably; and (3) as the relationship between management and the union evolves, grievance handling becomes more efficient and effective. Data on grievances and election results of Ford-UAW Local 400 from the 1950s were used to test hypotheses derived from these propositions; most received substantial, significant support.

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Meyer, D. The political effects of grievance handling by stewards in a local union. Journal of Labor Research 15, 33–51 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02685674

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02685674

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