Elias, Peter (1994) Job-related training, trade union membership, and labour mobility : a longitudinal study. Oxford Economic Papers, Volume 46 (Number 4). pp. 563-578.

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Abstract

Theoretical predictions of the relationship between job-related training provided by employers and labour mobility are unambiguous. Human capital theorists distinguish between training which provides 'general' transferable skills and the provision of'specific' non-transferable skill training (Becker 1975). Firms are less likely to provide the former type of training because of the difficulty of capturing the returns to training in the absence of deferred compensation schemes. Job-related training provided by employers is more likely to be of a non-transferable variety and, if the economic returns to such training are shared between the firm and the worker, lower turnover rates may be observed for ex-trainees. Job matching/screening arguments suggest that organisations may use induction and employee training development schemes as mechanisms which produce a positive 'corporate image', thereby increasing the size of the queue from which qualified job applicants will be recruited. Continued access to job-related training may be made available on a preferen- tial basis to those new recruits for whom a good worker/job match develops, such that the incidence of training is associated with longer job tenure (Barron et al. 1989). Despite the importance which attaches to an improved understanding of the links between job-related training and labour mobility, evidence on the nature of this relationship is scant. The study by Lynch (1991a, and, in more detail, 1991b) focuses upon the duration of the first job upon completion of full-time education, finding that young women in particular are more likely to remain longer with an employer who provides training. However, the presence of union influences may be an important intervening factor. Research based upon longitudinal data sources for the US indicates a lower rate of labour mobility among unionised as opposed to non-unionised labour (Freeman 1980; Farber 1980; Mincer 1983). Recent findings for the UK (Claydon and Green 1992) suggest that trade unions may have a significant indirect impact upon the provision of job-related training, via the associated reduction in labour turnover in unionised establishments. The research findings reported in this paper pursue further the issue of training, turnover and trade unions by taking advantage of one of the few datasets available within the UK which combine longitudinal information on labour turnover with details of job-related training for each job an individual has held and their trade union membership history. This information, collected © Oxford UniTefsily Press 1994 564 TRAINING, UNION MEMBERSHIP, AND LABOUR MOBILITY within the 1986-90 Social Change and Economic Life Initiative, derives from a random sample of the adult population living in one of the six localities studied within the project—Rochdale.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Divisions:	Faculty of Social Sciences > Institute for Employment Research
Journal or Publication Title:	Oxford Economic Papers
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
ISSN:	0030-7653
Official Date:	1994
Dates:	Date Event 1994 Published
Volume:	Volume 46
Number:	Number 4
Page Range:	pp. 563-578
Status:	Peer Reviewed
Publication Status:	Published
Access rights to Published version:	Restricted or Subscription Access

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