| Abstract: | Previous research on Japanese union members has documented occupational differences in employees' attitudes toward union organizations (Japan Productivity Center, 1990; Morishima, 1993). Yet, little has been done to examine why these differences occur. This study examines, using a data set obtained in 1987 from about 4000 employees, the correlates of union loyalty across white-collar and blue-collar occupations, and among white-collar occupations. A model is developed from previous research on employees' attitudes toward union organizations and on Japanese industrial relations. The results obtained by OLS analyses of union loyalty correlates—members' judgements of union contributions to improvements in employment outcomes and of employers' human resource policies—indicate that Japanese unions have benefited mainly blue-collar workers and traditional white-collar workers, such as those in administrative positions, relative to those in technical positions. |
