Labor unions remain politically influential despite declining memberships globally.
Data & Methods:
Combining survey data of American workers with inferential techniques exploiting legal union choice variation and policy position reversals over time.
Key Findings:
Unions significantly shape members' trade preferences, but self-selection accounts for only a quarter of this effect. Workers' policy views align with unions despite ideological mismatches.
Real-World Relevance:
This study demonstrates how unions cohere workers' political voices and highlights the role of information in preference formation.
