Using data from the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) Survey, this research indicates that unobserved heterogeneity substantially biases cross-sectional estimates of union wage effects upward for both males and females. Estimates of the union wage premium for male workers between the ages of 25 and 64 fall from 8.7 percent to 5.2...

In February 2008, Kate Ellis, Minister for Youth, invited universities, students, small business, sports and community groups to help inform the government on the impact of the current VSU policy. This discussion paper canvasses the issues. Minister Ellis will also meet with representatives from universities, students, small business, sports and community groups from across Australia...

Labor has moved a long way to unseat the government, says Anthony Forsyth, but is it too far for the unions?

Andrew Leigh finds that, on average, 63 per cent of trade union members vote for the Australian Labor Party. Despite the fact that union membership declined from around one-half of the workforce in the early-1980s to one-quarter of the workforce in the early-2000s, unionists have not become more pro-Labor. He finds that male unionists were...

Proposed laws on strikes and lockouts tip the playing field further against employees, argues Chris Briggs.