Robots steal jobs from unions—study shows decline in unionizations – Globalization and automation have contributed to a reduction in employment in those sectors, such as manufacturing, where unions were traditionally stronger

From the article

>Conducted by a team of researchers from Bocconi University, led by Paolo Agnolin, Massimo Anelli, Italo Colantone and Piero Stanig, the study explores the impact of new technologies on the European union landscape. By analyzing [union membership](https://phys.org/tags/union+membership/) data in 15 European countries over a 20-year period through 2018, the study offers valuable insight into the evolving role of unions in the digital age.

>The lack of disaggregated official data on the number of union members hinders research on the impact of social change on unions. We know the overall data on unionization in a given country and in a given year, but we do not have more specific numbers describing differences in union membership across industries and geographic areas. The Bocconi study, with an innovative method for estimating the percentage of unionized workers, has made it possible to create a unique dataset to fill this information gap.

>The results show a widespread negative trend, with Italy getting closer to traditionally unionized countries such as France. Differences between regions and sectors are clear: from 25% in Trentino-Alto Adige to 7% in Liguria, and from 27% in public education to 6% in house help.

>But what is to blame for this not-so-slow decline? “Globalization and automation have contributed to a reduction in employment in those sectors, such as manufacturing, where unions were traditionally stronger,” explains Massimo Anelli, an associate professor in Bocconi’s Department of Social and Political Sciences and an expert in labor economics.