Organized Labor and Loan Pricing: A Regression Discontinuity Design Analysis
43 Pages Posted: 7 Apr 2016 Last revised: 4 Oct 2016
Date Written: May 12, 2016
Abstract
This paper provides new evidence on the effect of unionization on cost of bank loans. By using a regression discontinuity design, we establish a causal relation from new unionization to bank loan pricing. Relative to firms in which unions barely lose elections, firms in which unions barely win elections experience an increase in the spread of the newly originated loans. Further tests suggest that the effect of labor unions on loan spread is through reducing recovery rate of banks in bankruptcy rather than increasing firms' default risk.
Keywords: labor unions, bank loans, regression discontinuity design
JEL Classification: G32, J51
Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation
Register to save articles to
your library
