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Protective service unions’ political activities and department expenditures

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Abstract

This paper examines how police and firefighter unions’ political activities influence departmental expenditures. Unlike prior research, we measure unions’ political activity independently of union bargaining power. Results indicate that a protective service union’s electoral activities positively affect departmental expenditures, and these effects are attributable to union political power rather than multilateral collective bargaining power.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Texas A&M University, 77843, College Station, TX

    Rafael Gely

  2. Louisiana State University, 70803, Baton Rouge, LA

    Timothy D. Chandler

Authors
  1. Rafael Gely
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  2. Timothy D. Chandler
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Additional information

The authors thank Steve Blumenfeld, Wally Hendricks, Asghar Zardkoohi, and an anonymous referee for their excellent comments and suggestions.

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Gely, R., Chandler, T.D. Protective service unions’ political activities and department expenditures. Journal of Labor Research 16, 171–185 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02685739

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02685739

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