Variable Pay and/or Collective Wage Bargaining? Complements or Substitutes?

Bechter, B; Braakmann, N; Brandl, B

Abstract

Whether collective wage bargaining impedes the implementation of variable pay systems is uncertain. The authors argue that much of this uncertainty is attributable to the fact that research neglects differences in the institutional structure of bargaining. Using representative company-level data for all member states of the European Union, the authors investigate the incidence of variable pay systems in general as well as pay types that include payment-by-results, performance-related pay, and team-related pay under various bargaining arrangements. Findings show that the institutional structure of collective bargaining matters: Variable pay systems thrive under company and multilevel collective bargaining, whereas their implementation is limited under national-level collective wage bargaining.

Citation

Bechter, B., Braakmann, N., & Brandl, B. (2021). Variable Pay and/or Collective Wage Bargaining? Complements or Substitutes?. Industrial and Labor Relations Review, 74(2), 443-469. https://doi.org/10.1177/0019793919883882

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jan 11, 2019
• Online Publication Date: Oct 29, 2019
• Publication Date: Mar 1, 2021
• Deposit Date: Mar 11, 2019
• Publicly Available Date: Apr 2, 2019
• Journal: Industrial and Labor Relations Review
• Print ISSN: 0019-7939
• Electronic ISSN: 2162-271X
• Publisher: SAGE Publications
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 74
• Issue: 2
• Pages: 443-469
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0019793919883882
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1306668