Neoliberalism, Piven and Cloward's Bargaining Theory, and Wages in the United States, 1965-2006

Authors

Thomas W. Volscho, City University of New York, College of Staten Island

Keywords

Wages, neoliberalism, Piven and Cloward, bargaining theory

Abstract

The political economy of the United States during the last thirty years has been described as neoliberal. Part of the neoliberal turn involves reducing or eliminating income support programs such as AFDC/TANF, waging war against organized labor, and increasingly conservative (i.e., neoliberal) public policies. Following an analysis by Lewis (2001) which showed that wages increased in response to higher average monthly AFDC payments, I update and expand this test of Piven and Cloward's bargaining power theory of wages by looking at other factors which may influence worker bargaining power: unions, interest rates, policy liberalism, and economic growth. I use time-series data on the U.S. covering 1965-2006 and find that AFDC/TANF benefits have a short-term positive effect on private-sector wages while declining union membership, punitive interest rate shocks, and increasingly conservative public policies have reduced the bargaining power of private-sector workers.

Recommended Citation

Volscho, Thomas W. (2012) "Neoliberalism, Piven and Cloward's Bargaining Theory, and Wages in the United States, 1965-2006," The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare: Vol. 39: Iss. 2, Article 4.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.15453/0191-5096.3666
Available at: https://scholarworks.wmich.edu/jssw/vol39/iss2/4