Walking and Chewing Gum at the Same Time? Assessing Environmental Performance of Unionized Facilities

Description

This study will examine the impact of labor unions on the trade-offs in social performance within firms, focusing on employee welfare and environmental performance. While unions play a vital role in shaping organizational practices and improving employee welfare, we argue that they may inadvertently compromise an organization's commitment to other stakeholders, particularly in regard to environmental sustainability. We leverage a unique longitudinal dataset of U.S manufacturing facilities, integrating the Toxic Release Inventory (TRI), Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) records, and Dun and Bradstreet (D&B) Historical Data File. Our preliminary findings suggest that unionized facilities increase the overall release of pollution. However, total, and accidental release of substances that are particularly harmful (OSHA chemicals) to employees who handle or are exposed to these chemicals are reduced. Based on our preliminary findings, we demonstrate there exists both a trade-off and complementary relationship between union presence and environmental performance, highlighting the complexity of balancing stakeholders' needs in resourceconstrained situations. The objective of our research is to enhance the understanding of labor unions' influence on environmental performance and to highlight the importance of a balanced approach to stakeholder interests for sustainable organizational practices.