Joint estimation of price-cost margins and union bargaining power for Belgian manufacturing
By: by Sabien Dobbelaere.
Series: Discussion paper ;; no. 1466; Discussion paper (Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit : Online) ;; no. 1466
Publisher: IZA
Published: 2005
Place of publication: Bonn, Germany
Language: eng
Format: Electronic resource
Subjects: Manufacturing industries -- Belgium -- Costs.; Manufacturing industries -- Belgium -- Prices.; Labor market -- Belgium.
Description: "This paper extends Hall's (1988) methodology to analyse imperfections in both the product and the labour market for firms in the Belgian manufacturing industry over the period 1988-1995. We investigate the heterogeneity in price-cost mark-up and workers' bargaining power parameters among 18 sectors within the manufacturing industry as well as the relationship between both parameters. Using a sample of more than 7 000 firms, our GMM results indicate that ignoring imperfection in the labour market leads to an underestimation in the price-cost margin evaluated at perfect competition in the labour market. These findings are confirmed in the sectoral analysis. Sectors with higher workers' bargaining power typically show higher price-cost margins"--Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit web site.
Notes: Also available in print.
Includes bibliographical references.
Title from PDF file as viewed on 4/26/2005.
System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader.
Mode of access: World Wide Web.