http://www.dailykos.com/story/2010/4/15/9101/43012?new=trueby The Electrical Worker
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Thu Apr 15, 2010 at 06:21:13 AM PDT
Most construction workers know that union membership translates into higher wages and better benefits.
* The Electrical Worker's diary :: ::
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But a new study finds that the economic benefits of union construction are not just limited to the job site, but benefits the community at large.
According to the report, "The Socio-Economic Impacts of Construction Unionization in Massachusetts," put out by Cornell University:
This research finds that unionization in
not only increases the incomes of union workers but also yields economic benefits that ripple through the economy ... These benefits include, but are not limited to, the positive economic impacts of higher union wages, as well as the stimulating effects of real estate investments of union pension funds.
Authors Maria Figueroa and Jeff Grabelsky, members of Cornell’s School of Industrial and Labor Relations, looked at construction unionization in Massachusetts, a state with one of the highest union market shares in the country.
They found that union workers earn an average of $13 dollars more per hour than nonunion workers in the Bay State’s construction industry. When benefits are included, they average $28.35 more per hour than their nonunion counterparts.
Higher wages not only provide union members with a solid middle-class career opportunity, they generate countless benefits for the Massachusetts economy, resulting in more than $2 billion in additional income for building trades’ members, amounting to a total income gain of $1.74 billion for all Massachusetts families.
Anti-union groups, like Associated Builders and Contractors, routinely denounce union labor for its higher wages, but the study finds that nonunion labor isn't necessarily cost-effective.
FULL story at link.
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